Man put indecent images on trees

The court heard Hay had more than 500 indecent images on his laptap

A convicted sex offender who stuck indecent photographs of children on trees has been jailed for two years and four months.

Hugh Hay, 54, from Rutherglen, pinned images of young girls in dense woodland on Cathkin Braes, near Glasgow.

Police were alerted by members of the public who were distressed by the photographs. Officers later caught Hay loitering nearby.

More than 500 indecent images were found on a laptop at his home.

At an earlier hearing at Glasgow Sheriff Court, Hay admitted a charge of public indecency and two offences involving indecent images of children.

Passing sentence, Sheriff Robert Anthony QC told Hay: "You posted the images on trees which were seen by others and caused particular distress.

"The courts have a duty to reflect the total public abhorrence of crimes such as these and as such I see no alternative to a custodial sentence."

Internet images

The court heard that in July this year, several witnesses walking in Cathkin Bares noticed pictures of semi-naked girls had been stuck onto trees.

Police were alerted and later that month officers on patrol found Hay lurking within the woods.

He ran off when he spotted them, but was arrested when he returned to the same spot later.

Baby oil and other lotions were found when he was searched.

The unemployed engineer later admitted he had stuck the images on the trees after printing them from the internet.

Kay Potter, prosecuting, said seven of the 560 images found on his laptop were at the most serious end of the scale used to grade such material.

Hay will also be supervised for 18 months on his release from prison and was placed him on the sex offenders register for 10 years.