Washington paedophile jailed for 13 years after paying to watch online child torture
A paedophile who paid people to abuse and torture children while he watched online has been jailed.
Brian Cairns was jailed for 13 years on Friday after admitting to sending large sums of money to abusers in the Philippines who would carry out the acts on his behalf.
Cairns first came to the attention of detectives in Northumbria Police’s Paedophile Online Investigation team (POLIT) after they received intelligence the now-60-year-old had been paying money into overseas accounts to purchase child sexual abuse materials.
On 14 April 2019, Cairns was arrested at his home address in Washington and officers seized a number of devices for examination, including a laptop which was handed to forensic investigators for analysis.
The specialists later found a hidden hard drive which contained 11 Category B and C child abuse images as well as Skype messages outlining the vile abuse Cairns wanted to see carried out on children as young as six years old.
He was later charged with two counts of inciting the sexual exploitation of a child and two counts of making indecent photographs of a child.
Cairns, of Pendle Close in Washington later appeared at Newcastle Crown Court where he pleaded guilty to all offences.
On Friday (October 22), he was jailed for 13 years with an extended one-year licence period.
Following the sentencing, the officer in charge of the case, Detective Constable Ian Beecroft of Northumbria Police, said: “Cairns is clearly a danger to children and so it is only right he is behind bars for a long time where he can longer abuse or harm anyone for his own gratification.
“I am pleased that this custodial sentence reflects the severity of Cairns’ crimes.
“I would like to thank all the officers who took part in this investigation, including the digital forensic examiners who were able to uncover what Cairns had hidden on his devices.
“They all played in their part in ensuring a comprehensive prosecution case was put before the courts, meaning a dangerous offender had little option but to admit his guilt. I hope this serves as a lesson to anyone who thinks they can get away with this type of criminality.”