A SHAMED former bus driver who went onto the ‘dark side’ of the internet to feed his sickening lust for brutal child pornographic images has been caged for three years.
Disgraced Gareth McAuley (45), formerly from the Waterside district, appeared at Derry Crown Court today for sentencing.
He was snared by an international police investigation set by up police in Canada.
Now living at Eglinton Street, Portrush, the child porn sicko had pleaded guilty to a total of 37 indecent images charges.
This included making, distributing and possessing indecent photographs between July 2012 and July 2013.
The items were found during a search of his home, which was as a result of intelligence gathered in a Canadian investigation in those accessing the ‘dark side’ of the internet in a bid to keep their identities a secret.
Cops in Canada believe he was part of global ring trading in some of the most horrific pictures and videos of primary school children being abused.
Derry Crown Court was told that McAuley had bought two DVDs containing child pornography which linked him to the Canadian investigation.
PSNI officers in the Public Protection were alerted by colleagues in Interpol.
After getting a search warrant, detectives raided McAuley’s home.
They seized his laptop and sent it to Knocknagoney crime branch HQ in east Belfast for it to be examined by experts in its ‘E-Crime’ Department.
Officers found it contained 854 indecent images.
And 123 indecent videos of young boys, the majority containing images of boys aged six to 10-years-old.
Judge Babington was told that McAuley was a member of an organised network and was “actively seeking images of small boys”.
The prosecution had rejected any assertion that the material had been stumbled upon accidentally by McAuley.
The most serious material – classified as category five – showed young boys been abused while in pain and crying.
The judge jailed McAuley for three years.
Half of his sentence will be spent in custody and the remainder will be spent on supervised licence on his release.
Judge Philip Babington imposed a determinate sentence of three years, half of which will be spent in custody and half on licence.
He was also placed on the sex offenders’ register.
And he is subject to a Sexual Offences Prevention Order for an indefinite period.
McAuley has also been banned from working with young children or vulnerable young adults on his release.
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