A 64-year-old Charlottetown man has been sentenced to 14 months at the provincial correctional centre with 18 months' probation for downloading and distributing "high-level" child pornography.
Frank Matthew McCourt also told a Skype contact that he preferred young performers, the younger the better.
He said 15 year olds were too old for him.
Police found more than 6,000 images and more than 200 videos on McCourt's computer and hard drive.
The content ranged from posing to explicit sexual activity between adults and children.
Early into the search, McCourt told RCMP that there would be child pornography in a folder called ‘extreme' on his desktop.
After he was arrested, he admitted to accessing and uploading child pornography into that folder and also on to an external hard drive.
McCourt also actively shared child pornography with other users on Skype.
Crown prosecutor Jeff MacDonald noted that the courts were in contact with a Skype user who engaged in conversation with McCourt regarding exchanging child pornography.
That's when he said 15 year olds were too old for him, stated the crown.
In the presentence report, McCourt aknowledged his offence and takes responsibility for his actions but maintained that he was only curious and not interested in child pornography.
MacDonald suggested that the evidence presented did not support that view; the files were much more organized and ongoing than would be found out of curiosity.
"Some of that content, I'm regretful to say after reviewing some of it, it involves some very high-level child pornography," said MacDonald. "Once you view those images they are difficult to delete from your mind."
Judge John Douglas took into account McCourt's guilty plea and his positive presentence report as he had a lifetime of employment, no prior record and was engaged in his community.
The mandatory minimum sentence for such an offence is 12 months but Douglas gave him 14 months for the aggravating factors such as the explicit nature of the images, the number and organization of them all.
McCourt apologized to the court, friends and family for his actions.
"I'm truly sorry for what I've done and I ensure the courts that I will not stand before you again."
McCourt is prohibited from having contact with persons under the age of 16.
He also has to provide a DNA sample, register as a sex offender and pay a victim surcharge of $200.
A 64-year-old Charlottetown man has been sentenced to 14 months at the provincial correctional centre with 18 months' probation for downloading and distributing "high-level" child pornography.
Frank Matthew McCourt also told a Skype contact that he preferred young performers, the younger the better.
He said 15 year olds were too old for him.
Police found more than 6,000 images and more than 200 videos on McCourt's computer and hard drive.
The content ranged from posing to explicit sexual activity between adults and children.
Early into the search, McCourt told RCMP that there would be child pornography in a folder called ‘extreme' on his desktop.
After he was arrested, he admitted to accessing and uploading child pornography into that folder and also on to an external hard drive.
McCourt also actively shared child pornography with other users on Skype.
Crown prosecutor Jeff MacDonald noted that the courts were in contact with a Skype user who engaged in conversation with McCourt regarding exchanging child pornography.
That's when he said 15 year olds were too old for him, stated the crown.
In the presentence report, McCourt aknowledged his offence and takes responsibility for his actions but maintained that he was only curious and not interested in child pornography.
MacDonald suggested that the evidence presented did not support that view; the files were much more organized and ongoing than would be found out of curiosity.
"Some of that content, I'm regretful to say after reviewing some of it, it involves some very high-level child pornography," said MacDonald. "Once you view those images they are difficult to delete from your mind."
Judge John Douglas took into account McCourt's guilty plea and his positive presentence report as he had a lifetime of employment, no prior record and was engaged in his community.
The mandatory minimum sentence for such an offence is 12 months but Douglas gave him 14 months for the aggravating factors such as the explicit nature of the images, the number and organization of them all.
McCourt apologized to the court, friends and family for his actions.
"I'm truly sorry for what I've done and I ensure the courts that I will not stand before you again."
McCourt is prohibited from having contact with persons under the age of 16.
He also has to provide a DNA sample, register as a sex offender and pay a victim surcharge of $200.
