Courts / Dublin / Report
Father of seven caught with hundreds of child abuse images
Summary
Patrick O'Brien, a 69‑year‑old father of seven from Oakwood Grove, Clondalkin, was arrested in June 2020 after Gardaí received information from the online child exploitation unit that he had downloaded child pornography onto a mobile phone linked to his address. Gardaí entered his Dublin home, where his wife and two adult children were gathered, and asked them to wait while O'Brien was located. When he returned, he admitted the wrongdoing, saying there was no point in covering up and that it was his fault. He handed over the phone, which was later found to contain about 200 images of children in sexually explicit poses, 55 images of naked children, and 75 images showing children as young as three being sexually abused by adults. O'Brien pleaded guilty on 6 June 2020 to possession of child‑abuse images under the Child Trafficking and Pornography Act, 1998.
Who, what, where, when and why
What: Report matter: Father of seven caught with hundreds of child abuse images. Charges or matters: possession of images depicting children engaged in explicit sexual activity, contrary to the Child Trafficking and Pornography Act, 1998, on June 6 2020. Procedural stage: sentence
When:
- June 2020 Other
- June 6 2020 Incident
- May 16 Adjournment
- 2022-01-13 Publication
Case subjects
Defendant
Charges: possession of images depicting children engaged in explicit sexual activity, contrary to the Child Trafficking and Pornography Act, 1998, on June 6 2020 (Admitted)
Plea: Guilty
Outcome: The images were described in graphic detail during the sentence hearing.; Judge Melanie Greally adjourned sentence to allow for an assessment by the Probation Service.
Places mentioned
Topics
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