A Dunfermline man has been sentenced after police found evidence of sick infant abuse pictures on his phone.
Last month, Kieron Lawson appeared at Kirkcaldy Sheriff Court to admit taking or making the twisted files between May 20 and August 14 last year.
As officers explained their early-morning raid, Lawson told them: “It’s me, I’ll give you my phone.”
Lawson claimed he was not sexually attracted to the sick files, which included children as young as infants being abused.
He has now been placed under supervision and banned from unsupervised contact with children.
Kik chats
Lawson returned to the dock to be sentenced and his solicitor Calum Harris revealed he is now living in homeless accommodation.
“As a result of this offence, which he does accept responsibility for, he’s lost a huge amount.
“He did not intentionally seek out such images.
“He was involved in a number of group chats following the breakdown of his relationship, on a number of different platforms – mainly Kik and others.
“Initially these were not of the nature that would elicit this series of images but he was added to other group chats that had a more sexual element to them.
“He accepts there was an element of curiosity on his part.
“By the time the police had seized his phone, they were deleted.
“There are some in Category A but it’s a very low number of indecent images, which is quite detached from what is often seen in these courts.
“He states in the report that there is no sexual attraction to this sort of material.”
Criminogenic needs
First offender Lawson was placed under supervision and on the sex offenders register for a year by Sheriff John MacRitchie.
The sheriff also imposed a string of strict conduct requirements relating to Lawson’s use of devices and banned him from having unsupervised contact with children without prior approval.
He said: “There are but 12 of these (images). They were inaccessible.
“However, the offence did involve the sexual abuse material of males and females in between infants and 12 years old.
“You have criminogenic needs that require to be addressed.
“In terms of assessing the harm you caused, the abuse of the children in these images is such that… the harm you caused will always be assessed in the highest category.
“Those who access this material bear a responsibility for such abuse by creating a demand for such material.
“This is patently a serious offence which still crosses the custody threshold. I accept that you’ve shown remorse.”
Home raid
The court previously heard police had received confidential information indecent images of children had been accessed at Lawson’s former home.
At his property in Dunfermline, they found Lawson, 30, and another person.
As police began to explain why they were there, Lawson interrupted and said: “This is nothing to do with her.
“It’s me, I’ll give you my phone.”
Analysis of the Samsung phone showed 12 illicit images had been on the phone but were inaccessible by the time they examined it.
Three of the images were considered the most graphic kind and all depicted girls aged from infants up to 12.
The court heard one of the images showed a girl, around 12 years old, being abused by an adult.
The creation dates of the files ranged right up until the morning police attended.
For more local court content visit our page or join us on Facebook.
