Face of taxi driver caught with child sex abuse video as he's jailed
A Wicklow man who has been jailed for 10 months for possession of a video containing child sex abuse material appeared to have carried out the offence in the hope he would be 'rumbled', a court has heard.
Keith Reilly (57), a taxi driver and married father of two from Upper Grattan Park, Kindlestown Lower, Greystones, Co Wicklow pleaded guilty to possession of the offending material contrary to Section 6 (1) of the Child Trafficking and Pornography Act 1998.
A sitting of Wicklow Circuit Criminal Court on Thursday heard that gardai were alerted to the existence of a video in a Dropbox account in Reilly's name by the US-based National Centre for Missing and Exploited Children.
Keith Reilly
News in 90 Seconds - July 24th
Detective Garda Dara McEvoy gave evidence of seizing a mobile phone during a search of the defendant's home on July 2, 2021.
Det Garda McEvoy said no child pornographic imagery was detected on the device but gardaí were 'extremely concerned' about the content and tone of a conversation between Reilly and another individual about young children in an exchange on WhatsApp.
He told counsel for the DPP, James Kelly BL, that files in a Dropbox account belonging to the defendant could not be opened but two videos containing 'Category 1' child sex abuse material were subsequently found in it with the assistance of authorities in the US.
Evidence was heard that one video contained a recording of children engaged in sexual activity while the other depicted a naked boy masturbating.
Det Garda McEvoy agreed with Mr Kelly that the WhatsApp conversation in itself constituted an offence under the legislation but the court heard that no prosecution had been entered in relation to it.
The court heard that Reilly had no other previous convictions apart from some road traffic offences from 20 years ago.
Cross-examined by defence counsel, Barry White SC, Det Garda McEvoy said he was aware that the accused had complained to gardaí in the past about being sexually abused as a child.
Det Garda McEvoy said he understood that a file on the complaint had been forwarded to the DPP who had directed that there should be no prosecution.
Mr White observed that the defendant felt a proper Garda investigation had never occurred into the matter.
The barrister said Reilly's offence seemed to be 'an endeavour to bring the matter into the open.'
Judge John Martin acknowledged that the offence related to a small amount of material when some similar cases involved hundreds of videos.
He also accepted that Reilly had cooperated with gardaí and entered an early guilty plea, while there was no evidence he had engaged in the offending behaviour over any prolonged period.
However, Judge Martin said he was somewhat concerned that Reilly was the father of two teenage girls given the nature of the offence who had also shown no empathy or remorse.
The judge said he disagreed with the view of both the defendant and his wife, that it was a victimless crime.
'Young people were exploited for the sexual pleasure of others,' the judge remarked. 'Innocent children were exploited by someone making money out of them.'
Judge Martin said Reilly's claim that he was not motivated by any sexual desire but was calculated to bring himself 'into the spotlight' was 'a difficult pill to swallow.'
The judge said it seemed like the defendant hoped he would be 'rumbled' which he found difficult to rationalise.
He observed that Reilly had a difficult childhood which no child should have to endure 'no more than the children in the video you were watching.'
The judge said he had been assessed at a low risk of offending although a psychologist believed such an assessment was likely to underestimate the risk due to the defendant's 'limited disclosure.'
Sentencing Reilly to 14 months in prison, Judge Martin suspended the final four months on condition that he places himself under the supervision of the Probation Service and complies with any directions given to him for a period of 12 months after his release from prison.
Another charge relating to possession of the other video was taken into consideration.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Irish Daily Mirror
a day ago
- Irish Daily Mirror
Man sexually assaulted his estranged wife while she was in bed with her children
A man who sexually assaulted his estranged wife on two separate occasions while she was sleeping in her bed with her young children has been sentenced to four years in prison. The 47-year-old father of two, who cannot be identified to protect the identity of his victims, pleaded guilty to two counts of sexual assault on his wife at their family home in Wicklow two years ago. Detective Garda Catherine O'Rourke said the couple, who are both non-Irish nationals, had separated in January 2023 but they had both continued to live in the same house. The witness told a sitting of Wicklow Circuit Criminal Court that the accused entered his wife's bedroom without her permission where she was sleeping with their two very young children on the night of November 10, 2023. Det Garda O'Rourke said the woman woke up at one stage and had the feeling she was being touched in some way. The woman said husband had remarked: 'Sorry, I was horny' after she found him leaning over her before telling him to get out of her room. The court heard that he had digitally penetrated his victim who reported the matter to gardai the following day. Det Garda O'Rourke said the woman also informed them that there had been another incident sometime earlier in March 2023 when she woke suddenly, while she was sleeping in bed with one of her children, to feel being touched on her skin under her nightdress. She said the woman had screamed at her husband to get out of the room when she realised he had been touching her bum. When arrested, Det Garda O'Rourke said the man claimed he had been in his wife's bedroom and had lifted his daughter and had gotten an erection as he had placed her back in the bed. She agreed with Mr Kelly that the accused was in denial about his offending but had cooperated with gardaí. The court heard the defendant, who had six previous convictions for road traffic offences, only pleaded guilty after a trial had commenced last February as his wife was about to give evidence. In an emotional victim impact during which she broke down repeatedly, the woman said she felt very unsafe and violated after the two incidents but she had nowhere to go and did not think the authorities would believe her. The woman said her husband, from whom she has now filed for divorce, would not move out of the house after their separation. 'He would be remorseful for a few days and then say he did nothing wrong,' she recalled. She said he would also accuse her of being difficult and dramatic and attempted to portray her as being promiscuous and a bad mother. The woman said the second assault had devastated her life forever with her children still asking questions about their father. She told the court that her main concern was to keep a family routine for her children despite her own personal feelings about their father. The woman said she believed that after securing a protection order that it would protect her from any further attempt to hurt or scare her. 'I was very wrong,' she added before breaking out in tears. She said her ex-husband continued to act brazenly in the house which would leave her whole body shaking and feeling 'in survival moment every time.' The woman said she could no longer sleep in the bedroom where the assault took place and would have to make up an excuse for her children why she was sleeping on the floor of their room. The court heard that she stopped wearing make-up and nail polish and took to wearing long-sleeved clothing because she felt the need to hide and make herself invisible, while she also developed severe skin conditions from stress. The woman said she had to take extended sick leave from her job after breaking down hysterically after returning to work several weeks after the second assault. She described how she had developed thoughts of suicide and had made an actual plan to take her own life while her children were with their father. 'My children are the only reason I am still alive. They are the reason I didn't do it,' she observed. The woman also fought back tears as she explained her belief that her neighbours no longer invited her children on playdates because of gardaí calling to her house. The Irish Mirror's Crime Writers Michael O'Toole and Paul Healy are writing a new weekly newsletter called Crime Ireland. Click here to sign up and get it delivered to your inbox every week After a period of living elsewhere, the woman said her ex-husband had returned to the house in January 2024 without her permission and refused to find alternative accommodation. The court heard he subsequently began to live in his car which was parked in front of her house which made her feel she was under surveillance all the time. The woman said what happened had also caused her great financial difficulties. She again broke down as she explained how she tried to keep co-parenting her children after the assault for their sake, despite her not being able to talk to or be in the same space as her ex-husband. The woman said his conviction came as a 'massive relief' because she did not believe she would ever be truly remorseful for what he had done. Judge John Martin sentenced the accused to four years in prison for the second sexual assault and 18 months for the first offence to run consecutively. However, the judge said he would suspend the final 18 months of the sentence on condition that the defendant keep the peace for a period of two years after his release from prison and have no further contact with his wife without her express consent. He said an aggravating factor in the case was how the accused had twice assaulted his wife in the same bed where his children were sleeping for his own 'gratification or power trip.' Noting the man was now on the sex offenders register, Judge Martin said his children were also secondary victims in the case, although he accepted the accused's expression of remorse as genuine. Sign up to the Irish Mirror's Courts and Crime newsletter here and get breaking crime updates and news from the courts direct to your inbox.
Sunday World
a day ago
- Sunday World
OAP spent 73 days in hospital after being hit by jack-knifed horse trailer
James Farrell, 62, appeared in court to face a charge of careless driving causing serious bodily harm along a section of the main N55. A collision involving what Judge Owens described as two "long based jeep type vehicles", one of which was driven by James Farrell left an old age pensioner with broken ribs, a punctured lung fractured pelvis vertebrae in his back alongside a multitude of other injuries, a court has heard. James Farrell (62) had been intending to plead guilty to a charge of careless driving causing serious bodily harm before Judge Bernadette Owens deemed the case to be too serious to be heard in the District Court. An old age pensioner was forced to spend almost three months in hospital and left with multiple broken bones when he was 'propelled into a ditch' by a vehicle that collided with a towed horse trailer along a busy national carriageway in the midlands. The elderly man, aged in his 80s, was left with several broken ribs, a punctured lung and fractured pelvis together with breaks to his left leg and shoulder, a dislocated right shoulder and fractured vertebrae in his back as a result of a collision which occurred at Cranalagh More, Edgeworthstown, Longford on August 18, 2024. Sixty-two-year-old James Farrell, with an address at Cranley Beg, Edgeworthstown, Co Longford appeared at a sitting of Longford District Court to face a charge of careless driving causing serious bodily harm along a section of the main N55. James Farrell (62) had been intending to plead guilty to a charge of careless driving causing serious bodily harm before Judge Bernadette Owens deemed the case to be too serious to be heard in the District Court. The court was told how the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) had directed the case to be disposed of in the District Court on a guilty plea only. Judge Bernadette Owens, in deciding jurisdiction, was informed the incident took place shortly after 8am when the pensioner exited the front passenger seat of a jeep he had been travelling in order to go to the toilet. The accused, the court heard, had been travelling in a "long based jeep type' vehicle when it collided with the horse trailer. Such was the force of the collision, the trailer jack-knifed and struck the elderly man who was thrown into a ditch as a result. James Farrell outside Longford Courthouse. Today's News in 90 Seconds - July 27th Farrell's defence solicitor Tom Madden indicated that while a guilty plea would be forthcoming, there were a certain degree of 'extenuating circumstances' at play. They chiefly revolved around the fact the collision took place at a particularly hazardous location and occurred at a time when his client's vision had been impaired by the glare of a rising morning sun. Having heard the State's evidence and submission made on behalf of Farrell, Judge Owens said the court had to weigh up a number of factors before deciding whether its sentencing powers were sufficient enough to dispose of the case. A collision involving what Judge Owens described as two "long based jeep type vehicles", one of which was driven by James Farrell left an old age pensioner with broken ribs, a punctured lung fractured pelvis vertebrae in his back alongside a multitude of other injuries, a court has heard. She said Farrell's intention to plead guilty was one such element, as was Mr Madden's contention in reference to the challenges posed by a low lying sun, the location of the collision on a 'narrowish' stretch of road and by the fact its locus was governed by the presence of a continuous white line. More crucially, however, she said were the 'very significant injuries' that emanated from the incident and which ultimately coincided in the elderly man's hospitalisation for a total of 73 days. On that basis, Judge Owens said the court had no option but to refuse jurisdiction. That prompted Sgt Enda Daly to take to his feet and reveal the DPP, on foot of the court's ruling, would now be consenting for Farrell to be returned for trial to the Circuit Criminal Court for trial or for sentencing on a signed guilty plea. Mr Madden confirmed sufficient disclosure of all State evidence in the case had been made in order to discuss those practicalities with his client. Farrell was consequently remanded on bail to appear back at a sitting of Longford District Court on September 23.
Irish Independent
2 days ago
- Irish Independent
Teacher banned indefinitely for having sex in art classroom
Liyarna Beamish (39) had taught at Ribston Hall High School in Gloucestershire since 2016 and had engaged in an affair with a fellow teacher for two years before it was uncovered last summer. The school was contacted by a third party on June 26, 2024, who informed school authorities that Ms Beamish had been engaging in sexual intercourse during school hours. They were also shown screenshots of messages sent between the two teachers. The messages were sexual in nature and had been sent during the working day. During an investigatory meeting, Ms Beamish admitted having sex on school premises, and confirmed messages on WhatsApp showed the two organising their liaisons. Couple of years – multiple occasions When asked on how many occasions had this happened, she replied: 'Couple of years – multiple occasions.' Ms Beamish also responded that the couple had engaged in sexual intercourse in the 'art room, and two art cupboards, both doors locked, downstairs door locked as well'. She was referred to the UK's Teaching Regulation Agency (TRA). The TRA panel examining the case concluded that Ms Beamish's behaviour had been 'sexually motivated' and had fallen 'very far short of the standard of behaviour' required in the teaching profession. It was also found that she had shown 'limited evidence of insight and/or remorse'. The report concluded: 'For these reasons, the panel was satisfied that the conduct of Ms Beamish amounted to misconduct of a serious nature which fell significantly short of the standards expected of the profession. 'Accordingly, the panel was satisfied that Ms Beamish was guilty of unacceptable professional conduct.' She has now been banned from teaching indefinitely in any educational institution, but can apply for the prohibition order to be removed in two years.
