Court / Man awaits sentence for indecent images offences

A MAN caught with more than 4,000 indecent still images of children has had his sentence deferred for background reports.

Gary Devaney, from Burra, was found to have 4,273 “unique” still images and 227 videos – totalling a runtime of six hours – when police searched his devices at his home on 13 January.

Police had been tipped off that the 25-year-old had been accessing the indecent material, and carried out a search of his house in January.

Lerwick Sheriff Court heard on Wednesday that Devaney had been at his work at the time, and was taken by officers to his address for the search.

During this Devaney claimed he did not have his mobile phone – and had left it at work – but then produced it when police said they would take him to get it.

Images were uncovered in the initial search of his phone, which lead to his arrest.

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The court heard that during his interview Devaney made several admissions, claiming he had stumbled onto the material and had become attracted to it.

However a cyber crime report of his devices uncovered an extensive cache of downloaded material, the court was told.

Accessible to officers were 1,522 still images – 232 of which were category A – and a further 3,671 images were initially inaccessible to them.

Of these 685 were category A, the most extreme category. A further 957 were category B and 2,029 were category C.

There were 114 videos accessible to police, with a further 245 videos initially inaccessible.

Of those inaccessible videos, 95 were category A, 59 category B and 91 category C.

Procurator fiscal Duncan Mackenzie said there was “some duplication” of images and videos across Devaney’s devices.

That lead police to a final “unique” total of 4,273 still images and 227 videos.

This material involved children of both sexes, and a number of them were very young, the court was told.

Devaney had acquired it through chat rooms and through talking to like-minded people online.

He admitted having indecent images of children in his possession between 25 June 2023 and 13 January 2025, and taking or permitting to be taken further photographs between 20 November 2021 and 20 January 2025.

Devaney also admitted distributing or showing images of children on or between 12 October 2024 and 6 January 2025.

The court was told that offence related to Devaney sharing material with people he was communicating with online, adding that seven images – all category B or C – and five videos were shared in that time.

Of the five videos, four of those shared were category A.

Defence agent Tommy Allan deferred mitigation until background reports could be prepared, and offered no objection to a Crown motion to forfeit Devaney’s mobile devices.

Sentencing on Devaney was deferred until 19 November. He will be subject to sexual offender notification requirements until then.