Child-porn accused gets R100 000 fine

A self-confessed paedophile father-of-two’s suspended sentence and fine of R100 000 has prompted outrage.

|||

Johannesburg - A self-confessed paedophile father-of-two has been given a suspended sentence and a fine of R100 000, prompting outrage from the women and children’s organisation monitoring the case.

The 40-year-old software developer was arrested last year as part of the Cloud 9 Operation that saw international and local police bust a child pornography ring, with members in countries across the world.

Earlier this month, the man begged the Alexandra Magistrate’s Court for mercy, asking for a non-custodial sentence, despite admitting and pleading guilty to possession and distribution of child pornography.

Women and Men Against Child Abuse (WMACA), who attended proceedings, said that on Wednesday, the same court gave the 40-year-old a deferred fine of R100 000 - to be paid over 10 months - and an eight-year suspended sentence.

WMACA advocacy manager Germaine Vogel said the court was shockingly lenient.

“Direct imprisonment, which includes compulsory rehabilitation programmes, should be handed down by our courts if they are serious about preventing these crimes and protecting children,” she said.

“This is the first sentence to be handed down to one of the accused linked to the International Take Down Operation, codenamed Cloud 9, and we at WMACA are shocked at the court’s leniency and that these cases are not being prioritised and heard in the higher courts as very serious criminal cases.”

Vogel said the accused had admitted distributing the pornography overseas, meaning the children’s images would be spread across the dark corners of the internet.

“Furthermore, he was in possession and had distributed hundreds of images of the rape and torture of very young children over a long period of time. So you cannot define him as a first-time offender - this is the first time he is arrested - his crimes cannot be deleted (and) they will be in circulation forever,” she said.

During his sentencing proceedings earlier this month, the man, through his advocate Morkel du Preez, acknowledged he had a serious psychological problem and was already seeking help from his pastor, a psychologist and a psychiatrist.

Du Preez insisted that he and his client were not trying to diminish the severity of his crimes, but that the 40-year-old’s life had already taken a swift downturn since the arrest.

His wife was in the process of divorcing him, he had not seen his two children in months and he had lost his job since police discovered the child pornography on his computer.

Du Preez explained that his client had admitted to his crimes, had taken responsibility for his actions and assisted police in their investigation into the child pornography ring after his arrest, all signs of his remorse.

The advocate argued the man would not be a suitable candidate for a prison sentence, as his client had already been traumatised by his two days in custody following his initial arrest.

A forensic report from child protection agency, the Teddy Bear Clinic, revealed that while the man’s 14-year-old son had been exposed to pornography, there was little evidence that the man had abused his children.

shain.germaner@inl.co.za

The Star