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Probation bond for man who viewed and distributed child abuse imagery
Summary
Gerard O'Neill, 66, was placed on a two‑year probation bond after pleading guilty in Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to possessing and distributing 225 child‑pornography videos found on his seized laptop, hard drive and CDs. The videos, dated between 15 April and 13 May 2015, included 214 scenes of pre‑teen boys with other children or adults and 11 scenes of boys with exposed genitalia. O'Neill, who had no prior convictions, was arrested in March 2018. The judge ordered him to attend a sex‑offender treatment programme, obey all directions of his probation officer, avoid contact with anyone under 18 unless supervised, and reside at an address agreed with his officer. He was also required to apologise and was warned that any breach could lead to further action. The court will review his progress on 12 May 2021.
Who, what, where, when and why
What: Report matter: Probation bond for man who viewed and distributed child abuse imagery. Charges or matters: possessing child pornography videos and distributing videos of child pornography at his home on dates between April 15 and May 13, 2015. Procedural stage: sentence
When:
- May 2015 Incident
- March 2018 Incident
- April 15 Incident
- May 13, 2015 Incident
- May 12, 2021 Other
- 2019-05-01 Publication
Why: She accepted that he later had to sell his home and O'Neill felt he sold it at "an incredible loss because of the damage caused to the property". CNI source report
Case subjects
Defendant
Charges: possessing child pornography videos and distributing videos of child pornography at his home on dates between April 15 and May 13, 2015 (Admitted)
Plea: Guilty
Outcome: At an earlier sentence hearing, the court heard that of the 225 videos, 214 showed pre-teen boys engaged in sexual acts with similarly aged children or adults, while 11 videos showed preteen boys with their genital areas exposed.
Places mentioned
- Deerpark Road
- Kiltipper Way
- Dublin
- Dublin Circuit Criminal Court
Topics
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