Jail for Bay man snared in worldwide net-porn sting

A Tauranga man caught in an international child porn sting after downloading more than 800 movies and 200 sexual text stories has been jailed for eight months.
Warren Neil Smith, 50, of Gate Pa, was sentenced in Tauranga District Court yesterday.
He had earlier pleaded guilty to 15 representative charges of possessing objectionable publications.
The court was told that during August 2005 German police investigated an internet forum which offered links to a website for people to access and download child sexual abuse movies.
Smith was one of a number of New Zealanders who German police found had been logging on to the website and downloading movies.
During a search of Smith's home on November 9 last year, Internal Affairs seized CDs, zip disks and documents and a computer unit, on which adult pornography was found under a folder called "spare".
More than 800 movies depicting children engaged in graphic sexual acts and poses involving adult abusers and more than 200 sexual text stories were also found under a main folder called "security links".
Smith admitted he had viewed pictures and movies of children involved in sexual acts or poses in the past but had deleted them through a security program and knew it was illegal to download or save such files.
Crown prosecutor Simon Bridges said, given the quantity and very graphic content of the videos found on Smith's computer, a prison sentence starting at between 9-12 months was appropriate.
Mr Bridges said the Crown also rejected entirely Smith's expressions of remorse and claims that he did not fully understand the seriousness of his offending.
Smith's assertion that he had downloaded the images not for sexual arousal purposes but as a challenge to see if he could access the files without a security password, was "beyond belief ".
Mere possession of this type of offensive material was not a victimless crime, he said.
"It is in a real sense evil and Mr Smith has not only assisted in creating a market and a demand for such images but ensured the continuation of a cycle of sexual abuse against these infants and young children."
Smith's lawyer, John Holmes, argued a prison term was too harsh given his client's lack of prior convictions and his health difficulties, which included an uncertain prognosis about a hepatitis C condition. Mr Holmes said Smith's many health problems made life difficult. He was lonely and had turned to his computer to fill that gap, spending significant amounts of time online, which ultimately lead to his offending.
Smith, who was deeply remorseful, had already paid the price for his stupidity. Publicity about the case had affected his personal relationships with family and friends and there had been a downturn in his business.
He was willing to do anything to make amends, including a stiff sentence of community work or a large fine.
But Judge Peter Rollo said given the scale of Smith's "sick" behaviour, the type of abhorrent and depraved offending, community work would be a totally inadequate response and a robust deterrent was required for this type of crime which was difficult to detect due to its covert nature.
"I reject entirely your explanation for downloading these images and consider you assertion that it was not for sexual pleasure entirely untrue."
However Judge Rollo said he was prepared to grant Smith leave to apply for home detention on health grounds.
Steve O'Brien, the national manager of Internal Affairs' Censorship Compliance Unit, said he hoped this case sent a clear message that simply possessing these type of offensive and depraved material would mean prison.