Scots lockdown pervert banned from public parks over child abuse image haul

dailyrecord.co.uk:

A sex offender sailor has been banned from going into parks or play parks after being caught hoarding child abuse images. Gordon Gray, who has been in the Merchant Navy for 19 years, stockpiled thousands of files during Scotland's first coronavirus lockdown.

A court heard he downloaded and hoarded horrific videos of toddlers being raped and babies and young boys being sexually abused.

The 37-year-old kept nearly 5,000 files on an Asus laptop which was sitting on his bed when police officers arrived to investigate.The stash of 4,779 images was built up between February 15 and October 22, 2020, Kilmarnock Sheriff Court heard.Between March 23 and May 29, Scotland was the subject of lockdown restrictions, to stop the spread of the deadly Covid-19 virus.Gray, of Ardrossan, North Ayrshire, returned to the dock yesterday to be sentenced, having earlier pleaded guilty to two charges.He had admitted downloading indecent images of children and being in possession of the illegal files - in breach of the Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982.After hearing that Gray may lose his job as a result of the conviction and the fact he was being placed on the Sex Offenders' Register, Sheriff Murdo Mactaggart spared him jail.

He placed him on a three-year-long Community Payback Order which will see him supervised by social workers. He also has to attend the Moving Forward: Making Changes programme, which seeks to help sex offenders change their ways.