Louth man who had child sex abuse videos and images surprised he was not caught sooner

By Francis Carroll, The Drogheda Independent

A man who had 217 child sex abuse videos and images has been jailed for one year and 9 months.

Ciarán Martin (42), Hurlestone, Ardee, told Gardaí following his arrest that he had been viewing such material for many years and was surprised that he hadn’t been caught sooner.

The defendant, who is single, signed pleas of guilty to six counts on the indictment of possession of child sex abuse videos and images.

Handing down a sentence of two years and six months, the final nine months suspended, Judge Dara Hayes said that these were serious crimes “involving real children and real victims wherever they might be in the world”.

Gda Neil O’Malley gave evidence that an investigation stemmed from an upload on January 4, 2022 to a Dropbox account registered to Mr Martin.

At 8.40am on the following March 17, his home was searched and twenty-three electronic devices in a mix of a laptop, mobile phone and thumb devices were seized. He was present at the time and admitted all were his.

Five were positive for child sex abuse material. A total of 217 images and videos were detected.

Gda O’Malley explained that 71 were Category 1, relating to children engaged in or viewing sexual activity; 77 Category 2, children’s genitalia visible; and 69 were Category 3, anime-type.

The defendant was subsequently arrested by arrangement. He was co-operative, made admissions and accepted responsibility.

He told investigators that he had been viewing this type of material for 20 years and was surprised he hadn’t been caught sooner.

Gda O’Malley said that position changed and it may not have been for 20 years. The accused described it as a “curiosity”.

The imagery was saved across a number of devices. He had obtained it from Kik Messenger. An uncle’s anniversary in numerics was his password. There was no evidence of deletion.

Today's news in 90 Seconds - Monday June 23

Following this he was put out of the house by his father and was of no fixed abode, couch surfing and sleeping in his car. He had returned to the family home he shared with his father and brother.

There was one previous conviction for no NCT on his vehicle.

Defence counsel said that Ciarán Martin was extremely forthright with the Probation Service about his proclivities and submitted that was the first step in addressing the issue.

He put himself through DkIT and for the last five years worked full-time constructing panels for data centres.

Both his father and brother relied heavily on him. They lived in a rural area.

He accepted it was not a victimless crime. He kept the material to himself. The Garda search was an end to this behaviour.

Judge Hayes said that there were effectively no previous convictions and no suggestion of distribution of this material by the defendant.

"These are serious crimes involving real children and real victims wherever they might be in the world, children of particular vulnerability and often of deprivation.”

The judge continued that 217 was a considerable quantity. Approximately one-third was of the most serious nature. The children were aged between eight and 13 in the main.

This offending was not done on a once-off basis “but over many years”.

Judge Hayes said the need for a general deterrent must weigh heavily in this case.

On each of the six charges, concurrent two-year, six-month sentences were imposed, the final 9 months conditionally suspended for two years.

Mr Martin must place himself under probation supervision for two years post-release and engage with a sex offenders’ programme if suitable.

His barrister had sought and was granted a one-day deferral before finalisation for the defendant to remove his car which was parked outside.

Judge Hayes remarked it was “a little bit surprising arrangements were not made”.

Puma pusa Ess Small No.1 Logo Relaxed

Why The X5 SUV is So Affordable (Explore Offers)

Harjumaa Citizens: Expose Circular Lobbying

See Why the Volvo EX40 is So Affordable (View Offers)

See The EVs With The Longest Ranges For 2027 (Take A Look)

I Asked AI What Rich People Do Differently. The Answer Was One Word.

Tallinn: Who Funds Your Lobbyists [Read]