Prestwick sex offender 'felt entitled' to watch child abuse

Sex offender Mark Cashman avoided jail - for now - after a court heard social workers had described him focussing on 'his own vulnerabilities' and 'sense of entitlement to view' the horror sex abuse images.

The 51-year-old had been given another chance to speak to court social workers before sentence, after complaining of his own 'predicament and circumstances' rather the impact his offence had on children subjected to the sick abuse.

Cashman pleaded guilty to a charge of taking, permitting to be taken or making indecent images of children between November 11, 2009, and February 20, 2023, after downloading copies of the pictures.  

He also admitted possessing the same images on a firestick device and computer 'locked in a separate bedroom' at his address in Ayr Road, when he appeared in court on July 22.

The Procurator Fiscal depute said: “He [first] appeared on petition on March 20, 2023, appearing on a police undertaking. He was committed for further examination and released on bail.  

“Following an investigation by the national online child abuse scheme, police attended his home address on February 20, 2023, in possession of a sheriff search warrant.  

"They were allowed entry by the accused's wife, and was found present in a separate bedroom which was locked from the inside at the time.  

“Police recovered a desktop tower unit and Amazon firestick. Both were confirmed relevant and he confirmed ownership of the devices.  

"Police officers cautioned and charged the accused, who made no reply. The device, the firestick, was noted to be connected to the tower unit.  

"The web history was found with child sex abuse search terminology.

"Cybercrime analysis of the firestick showed, in category A, two accessible images, category B four unique accessible images, category C, 477 images, 473 accessible [not having been previously deleted].  

"These images were predominantly female children of three to 17 years of age.  

"The description of the images provided I don’t propose to read in court. Further moving images found were: “Category A, 68; Category B, 12; and Category C, three, these contained male and females aged six to 16.  

“The tower unit, had 347 Category A still images, 327 accessible; 500 Category B, 435 accessible; 3,654 Category C, 3,615 accessible, a total of 4,501 unique images. These were female, zero, newborn, to 16.  

"The tower unit also contained moving images: 676 Category A , 634 accessible; 301 Category B, 288 accessible; and 84 Category C, 75 accessible, totalling 1,061 moving images.  

"These contained children aged one to 16, predominantly female."  

He added: “He is aware he will be subject to the notification requirements." 

Sheriff Mhairi MacTaggart deferred sentencing for risk assessment and social work enquiries, adding him to the sex offenders register.

He returned to Ayr Sheriff Court on Monday, September 2, wearing a pandemic facemask.

Defence solicitor John Gallagher said: "Mr Cashman is 51 single and co-habits with his long time partner. He is employed but currently suspended pending the outcome, but fair to say either way, that post will cease.

"My Lady will find the report concerning. It is fair to say he found the reporting process a challenging one, it is undoubtedly designed to be challenging. I think there were issues particularly when his family background was being discussed.

"It's fair to say [a comment] was something he took great umbrage with. Perhaps his presentation was impacted. The interview is very contradictory.

"Once we received the cyber crime report, he instructed a plea of guilty.

"I recognise in the [social work] report there is focus on his own predicament and circumstances rather than the impact of this offence.

"He is thoroughly disgusted with himself, I want to make that abundantly clear."

Sheriff MacTaggart said: "He describes 'his own vulnerabilities', 'lack of accountability', 'sense of entitlement to view these images'.

"These children were subjected to the most appalling behaviour, the worst I think I've ever seen."

Mr Gallagher said: "He fully recognises that, he accepts viewing this is far from victimless and it perpetuates the abuse.

"Unfortunately, in the preparation of the report Mr Cashman, while accepting responsibility, tried and went too far in pointing to significant factors in his own childhood."

Sheriff Mactaggart said: "There are two aspects to sentence, not just to punish but he has got to stop this offending. He cant, if he doesn't accept responsibility. Not responsibility for being caught, but responsibility for, over a 19 year period, looking at appalling images of children being very, very badly abused.

"The bottom line is this, Mr Cashman has got to accept what he was looking at, accepts how serious this is, not victimless, and why he looked at them."

She then told him: "I can easily send you to jail."

She deferred sentence for Cashman to do 'do a bit more soul searching' and continued bail.