A Wicklow man found in possession of nearly 800 images of child sexual abuse material has received a suspended prison sentence.
Dublin Circuit Criminal Court heard that gardaí carried out a search of the residence of Mark Moran, 44, in June 2015 and seized a number of devices after receiving a tip-off from police in the UK.
When these devices were analysed, approximately 782 images and 20 movies of child sexual abuse material were discovered.
Moran, of Ashbrook Terrace, Sallymount Avenue, Ranelagh in Dublin, pleaded guilty to possession of child sexual abuse material, referred to in law as child pornography.
Moran has no previous convictions and has not come to garda attention since this incident.
Garda John Walsh agreed with James Dwyer SC, defending, that there was a delay in the analysis of the devices due to a shortage of resources and Moran was not arrested or charged until 2020.
Gda Walsh agreed that Moran made some admissions during interview and told gardaí they would find adult pornography on the devices, adding that he might have "inadvertently" downloaded other material.
During interview, Moran apologised to gardaí and said he was "devastated" that the material was found on his computer, which he said was not downloaded intentionally.
Mr Dwyer told the court his client is originally from Wicklow and has no addiction issues. He has a long work history in IT and has been providing support services for a university.
A letter from Moran was submitted to the court, which outlined his awareness that the children depicted are victims of sexual abuse. He said he understood his possession of this material was prolonging their abuse. He said he had intended to view adult pornography and felt "ashamed" and "disgusted".
Mr Dwyer suggested this offence was "out of character" for his client and that while the offending is serious, it was isolated. He asked the court to take into account his client's guilty plea, lack of previous convictions and other mitigating factors.
He submitted to the court that Moran is at low risk of reoffending and will also face opprobrium for this offence.
Judge Martin Nolan said a "substantial amount" of material was found on Moran's devices, noting this type of offending is of a "serious nature".
The judge said the legal precedent from the Court of Appeal is that a non-custodial option must be considered in the absence of aggravating features such as distribution of the material.
"That precedent operates in this court," the judge said, adding that there was no great aggravating features in this case, though he emphasised possession of child sexual abuse material is itself a serious matter.
He imposed a sentence of 21 months, fully suspended on strict conditions.
Judge Nolan said "hopefully [Moran] is old and wise enough to make his way in life," adding that any repeat of this offence would go differently.
The judge also noted this type of offence tends to attract "public odium and shame".
