Jury to look at abuse photographs

Another pre-trial hearing has been set for the High Court in Edinburgh

A jury is to be asked to look at photographs and videos of child abuse, a court has heard.

Eight men are facing charges linked to the alleged making, possessing or distribution of child pornography.

Neil Strachan, 40, James Rennie, 38, Ross Webber, 27, Colin Slaven, 23, appeared at the High Court in Edinburgh on Wednesday.

Craig Boath, 24, Neil Campbell, 46, John Milligan, 40, and John Murphy, 43, also appeared at the pre-trial hearing.

They had come to court for lawyers to discuss preliminary legal issues in advance of a trial which is expected to start in March.

Another pre-trial hearing has been fixed for 9 February.

Certain of the images of child abuse that are relevant to this case will have to be shown to the jury Advocate depute Dorothy Bain Prosecuting

One charge alleges a serious sexual assault on a boy who was only three months old at the time.

Another charge claims there was a conspiracy to use telephone contacts, web cameras and other means to make contact with youngsters to commit indecent acts including rape and sodomy.

Advocate depute Dorothy Bain QC, prosecuting, told judge Lord Brodie: "Certain of the images of child abuse that are relevant to this case will have to be shown to the jury."

She said the Crown were working on ways to select a sample of the material for use during a trial.

Ms Bain also told the court: "This is an enormous case which essentially is based on material which has been obtained through the examination of computer equipment."

The alleged offences are said to have been committed at addresses in Edinburgh, East Lothian, Glasgow and Dundee, including the base of LGBT Youth Scotland in Edinburgh.

Mr Strachan, from Edinburgh, is accused of possessing indecent photos of children, taking pictures or permitting them to be taken and distributing them.

Web camera

Mr Slaven, from Edinburgh, faces similar charges. The two men are also accused of sodomising an 18-month-old boy and indecency with two other youngsters who were about four and six.

They are also accused of destroying a laptop computer and pretending it had been stolen in an attempt to defeat the ends of justice.

Mr Rennie, also from Edinburgh, faces child porn charges and is accused of carrying out indecent acts with a boy, only three months old at the time, sodomising a 12-year-old, and electronic attempts to avoid detection while accessing or distributing images.

Mr Webber, from North Berwick, East Lothian, and Mr Campbell, from Glasgow, and Mr Boath, from Dundee, face similar child porn charges. So do Mr Milligan and Mr Murphy, from Glasgow.

Mr Strachan, Mr Rennie, Mr Webber, Mr Boath, Mr Campbell, Mr Milligan and Mr Murphy are accused of acting together and with others to distribute or show "indecent photographs or pseudo-photographs" by swapping images - one said to show Mr Strachan sodomising an 18-month-old boy.

Mr Strachan, Mr Rennie, Mr Webber, Mr Boath, Mr Campbell and Mr Milligan also deny conspiring together and with others to meet and participate in the commission of sexual offences against children.

The allegations listed in the conspiracy charge include logging onto websites - at least one believed to be based in the US - using a web camera to watch sexual abuse and listening over the telephone while sex acts were being committed.