A paedophile whose computer was crammed with more than 30 hours of horrific child abuse has been jailed for 22 months.
Reclusive loner Andrew Forbes had downloaded 212 video files filled with the very worst kind of sado-masochistic abuse.
Sheriff Fiona Tait said she had no option but to impose a custodial sentence as it had been clear that many of the children forced into sex acts in the footage were in distress.
She ordered that he be subject to a two-year extended sentence following his release and also told him that he will be on the sex offenders’ register for life.
Forbes had trawled the internet for the images during a seven-month period last year and amassed a library of videos depicting horrendous scenes of child abuse.
The 36-year-old, of Cottarton Cottage, Logiealmond, was described as “socially isolated” and was said to have downloaded many of the files while abusing cannabis.
Forbes told social workers abuse he suffered personally in his early years had contributed to his looking for the images.
Perth Sheriff Court was told police officers had received information Forbes was downloading indecent images.
His laptop was examined and found to have one active user profile in the name “Andy”, containing three folders of illicit material.
A shocking 92 of the files found categorised as level five the most serious level of abuse while 79 were level four, 19 were level three, eight were level two and four were in the lowest category, level one.
They were found to contain footage of children predominantly boys from infant age to approximately 16 in states of undress and being abused, while the video files had a combined running time of one day, six hours and 56 minutes.
Forbes was interviewed by officers and admitted having downloaded the material between March 23 and October 3 last year.
Solicitor Mike Tavendale said his client had downloaded the video footage over “a fairly short period of time” and had viewed “a relatively small amount” of the files.
Sentencing Forbes, Sheriff Fiona Tait said: “There were some 200 images on your computer which is categorised as a “small number” by the High Court.
“They are, however, predominately at levels 4 and 5 and so I am in no doubt that a custodial sentence is appropriate.
“In certain of the level 5 videos, the children were noted to be in distress.”