An Aberdeen man has admitted hoarding videos and photographs of children as young as one being sexually abused.
Stephen Rogan, 30, was snared by police when they executed a search warrant and seized two mobile phones at his home on May 16 last year.
He downloaded 516 images and more than two hours of indecent videos, many in the most serious category.
Fiscal depute Christy Ward told Aberdeen Sheriff Court that detectives visited Rogan’s home with a search warrant and cautioned him.
“A systematic search of the property was undertaken,” Ms Ward said.
“A number of devices were seized, including a Samsung mobile phone which the accused identified as belonging to him.
“He provided the passcode for the phone and another Samsung mobile with a cracked screen.
“An initial examination of the phone found that it contained child sexual abuse material.
“Accordingly, the accused was cautioned, arrested and taken to Kittybrewster Police Station.”
Girls aged between one and 14
The first Samsung phone was found to hold 516 images, with 145 considered to be Category A – the most serious – 123 Category B and 201 Category C.
The total length of the videos found on the phone was 2 hours 11 minutes.
Rogan’s Samsung with a cracked screen was also examined and one Category C image was found.
The images recovered on both devices features girls between the age of one and 14 years old.
It was assessed that the images were downloaded between November 13 2018 and April 17 2021.
Rogan, a former retail worker, pleaded guilty to one charge of downloading indecent images of children.
‘You need to see the significant harm this causes’
Defence agent Caitlin Pirie told the court that her client had “admitted full responsibility”.
She added: “He hasn’t been able to give any reason for his offending and that’s because of shame.
“But he has acknowledged that his offending would contribute to the cycle of child abuse images online.
“Given the nature of his offending, I’m sure the court will be considering the imposition of a custodial sentence, but he has accepted responsibility and he pleaded guilty at an early stage.”
Ms Pirie also stated that Rogan had a series of five-month and one-year gaps between downloading the indecent images.
Sheriff Morag McLaughlin told Rogan: “I’m sure you realise how serious this is.
“It seems to me that you need to do programme work to reduce your risk of offending.
“You need to see the significant harm this causes to those who are in these images.”
Sheriff McLaughlin sentenced Rogan, of Victoria Road, Aberdeen, to a three-year community payback order with supervision and 200 hours of unpaid work.
She also placed him on the sex offenders’ register for three years and ordered him to take part in a sex offenders programme.
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