The Courier & Advertiser (Fife Edition)
Offender who wanted ‘paedo family’ caught arranging child abuse
APerthshire man told parents he wanted to sexually abuse their children and become part of a “paedo family”.
Kevin Flaherty asked other like-minded people online if they would adopt children with him.
Police raided the 47-yearold’s home in Aberfeldy and found a hidden cache of child abuse files on his iPhone.
Perth Sheriff Court heard how he was caught in an undercover sting operation trying to arrange hook-ups with a family to impregnate their 10-year-old daughter.
Flaherty cried in the dock as he admitted four charges linked to online child abuse.
He was remanded for his own safety.
The court heard how police armed with a search warrant descended on Flaherty’s rented home in Churchill Court, Aberfeldy, days before Christmas 2021.
Fiscal depute Lora Apostolova said an iPhone was seized from the accused.
“An examination of the device was carried out, showing that it contained images of children.
“The accused was cautioned, arrested and taken into custody.”
The phone was later assessed by cybercrime officers.
They found 41 illicit files, including seven videos and 34 still images.
Ms Apostolova said they featured children as young as five years old.
Flaherty was an active member of more than 40 groups on messaging app Kik.
“The accused used these groups to seek out likeminded individuals,” Ms Apostolova said.
Police assessed nearly 3,500 Kik chat logs which featured messages of a “predominately sexual nature”.
The fiscal depute said: “The accused regularly asked if the chat partners had children, if they were active with their children and if they wanted to adopt children with him.
“In some of the messages, the accused states the desire to be a paedo family, or asks if they want him to be a paedo husband.”
The court heard Flaherty was the subject of an undercover operation by the South-East Regional Organised Crime Unit.
The sting involved officers posing as parents on certain online groups.
Ms Apostolova said: “The accused engaged with an undercover officer who was posing as a 37-year-old male who was married with three young children.”
The pair chatted for
about four months between August and November 2021.
“The officer makes it clear to the accused that he and his wife are actively involved in child sexual abuse and the exploitation of their three children.
“The accused took a keen interest in this and expressed his own desire to be active with the children.”
The court heard that he sent photos of his face, upper body and private parts and asked the decoy to show them to his children.
In the messages, Flaherty talks about wanting to impregnate the man’s daughter, and also abuse his seven-year-old son. He said he would travel to meet them and insists that he is being real and not indulging in fantasy chat.
Solicitor David Holmes, defending, asked for his client to be released on bail ahead of sentencing next month.
“He is no doubt that custody will be uppermost in the court’s mind,” he said.
“He has been anxious about these proceedings.”
Sheriff William Wood told Flaherty: “These matters are clearly very serious and disturbing.
“Because of that, I cannot deal with them today. I require background reports.”
He added: “Having regard to the nature of these charges and the despicable conduct outlined, a custodial sentence is at the forefront of my mind.
“I also have some
concerns about your continued safety should you remain at liberty.”
Flaherty, of Dunkeld Road, Perth, admitted having indecent photos of children between October 10 2017 and December 21 2021.
He further pled guilty to behaving in a threatening or abusive manner, likely to cause fear and alarm, between October 13 and November 30 2021, by sending messages to others on social media platforms that discussed sexual abuse of children, and made arrangements to meet users for the purposes of sexually abusing children.
He also distributed or showed indecent photos between November 30 and December 12 2021.