Internet paedophile sent to jail

Ross McKinnon was jailed at Falkirk Sheriff Court

An internet paedophile caught after a joint operation between Scottish Police and the FBI has been jailed.

Ross McKinnon, 33, from Hallglen, near Falkirk, also served as captain of the 5th Grangemouth Company Boys Brigade.

The investigation resulted in officers discovering more than 31,000 images of naked children on his home computer.

McKinnon was given 20 months in jail with 15 months on licence at Falkirk Sheriff Court. He was placed on the sex offenders register for 10 years.

Sentencing him, Sheriff William Gallacher told McKinnon: "Judges have repeatedly stated this is not a victimless crime.

"You were willing to allow the continued abuse of the children involved in these images and videos."

McKinnon was discovered after agents from the FBI in Los Angeles began investigating a website called Namgla (North American Man Girl Love Association).

15-minute video

They were able to trace thousands of people who had logged on and exchanged files on the site.

McKinnon's details were passed to the Child Exploitation and Protection Centre (CEOPS) in London and then to Central Scotland Police.

Armed with a warrant, officers from the force's computer crime unit raided McKinnon's home and found 31,129 indecent images of boys and girls on his computer.

In August, McKinnon pleaded guilty to possessing and distributing child pornography between 1 November 2005 and 31 August 2006.

The successful prosecution of Mr McKinnon in the UK should serve as a warning to those who conduct similar illicit activity online, in the US or around the world J Stephen Tidwell FBI agent

Before sentencing, Sheriff Gallacher was shown 15-minute video footage of a young girl recovered from McKinnon's computer.

The court heard that as a condition of his membership of Namgla, McKinnon was required to upload fresh pornographic images to the site every 30 days to ensure "a constant supply of material" was available to other users.

He uploaded more than 350 images over a six-month period, all trawled from the world wide web.

McKinnon had been left in charge of boys aged as young as five in the Christian youth organisation, but resigned as soon as he was caught.

'Illicit activity'

J Stephen Tidwell, assistant director of the FBI in Los Angeles, said: "This conviction exemplifies the robust cooperation the FBI shares with the international law enforcement community.

"In this case, it was to find and prosecute consumers of a child pornography website which served a global community of online predators.

"The successful prosecution of Mr McKinnon in the UK should serve as a warning to those who conduct similar illicit activity online, in the US or around the world."

Eddie Collier, who recently retired as president of Falkirk and District BB, said McKinnon would have had to pass strict checks before becoming a BB leader.

He said: "I knew he had resigned but I didn't know the details until now.

"There is a very vigorous screening process before anyone can become a BB officer.

"The BBs and the Church of Scotland have a quite complicated registration system. It is not something that is done lightly."

McKinnon's solicitor Neil Hay said: "He has caused the Boys Brigade a great deal of embarrassment and he is sorry for that.

"His family has been greatly disappointed in him, he has been isolated from his social group, and has suffered from depression as a result of this case."