A Dundee paedophile was caught with a sick selfie taken while a child was nearby.
John Milne, 28, appeared at Dundee Sheriff Court to admit sexual offending.
He was found to have a photograph of himself perched on a sofa holding his erect penis while a very young child was on the other end of the couch.
Milne was placed on the Sex Offenders Register and will be sentenced next month.
Sick stash
Fiscal depute Gavin Letford explained police were made aware of intelligence relating to child abuse material being stored on devices at Milne’s home.
During an early morning raid, they found him at home with his father and seized two iPhones.
Milne told his dad he knew why the police were there.
Sick files were uncovered by police who carried out a forensic analysis of Milne’s devices.
They found vile images and videos, mostly of boys, aged from newborns to 11-year-olds.
His twisted clips had a total run-time of two hours and 16 minutes.
On the second phone, police found a folder containing more filth including the image of Milne on a sofa exposing himself, with a child nearby playing computer games.
There was also evidence of a five-second video clip of the child, naked from the waist down, playing a games console.
Later, another of Milne’s phones was taken in for analysis and more sick files were found
Brain injury
Milne admitted taking or making and possessing abuse material between October 2017 and February 2021.
He also admitted that in 2017 or 2018, he engaged in sexual activity in the presence of a young child – aged four or five – by taking a lewd photograph of himself in their presence.
Solicitor Anika Jethwa said: “Mr Milne does have his difficulties, he is easily confused.
“Mr Milne had a brain injury on September 20 2016.
“This case has had a protracted history due to the mental health issues of the accused.”
Created ‘marketplace for sinister people’
Sheriff Timothy Niven-Smith deferred sentencing until June 20 for reports.
He said: “It’s often thought that the possession of these types of images are victimless and these people in the videos and photos are not real people.
“That would be wrong.
“By downloading them and possessing them, you create a marketplace for these sinister people who exploit children by creating these images in the first place.
“I accept that you’re vulnerable. These charges are serious and the court is considering imposing imprisonment.
“The court will have to be persuaded that there is something other than custody.”
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