Child sex abuser and rapist 'plumbed abyss of depravity'

A paedophile who sexually abused children as young as two and filmed and distributed footage of his crimes has been given a life sentence.

Benjamin Young sexually assaulted ten children and raped one victim on dozens of occasions during a catalogue of prolific offending.

On Tuesday, a judge told Young: “This, in my view, is one of the worst cases of its kind to come before the High Court.”

Lord Arthurson said at the High Court in Edinburgh: “Your offending has plumbed the very abyss of depravity.”

Young, 43, pled guilty to 32 offences on an indictment which originally contained 102 charges against him.

The offences he admitted included rape, multiple sex assaults and possession, taking and distribution of indecent images between January 2021 and December 2022. Nearly all the offending occurred in Argyll and Bute.

Cybercrime experts discovered that Young was active on the dark web where he created and moderated online private chat rooms to facilitate the exchange of child abuse material.

He also induced others to commit sexual offences against children and accepted indecent images of youngsters in exchange for entry to online private chat rooms.

Detective inspector Adrian Ure, of Police Scotland’s National Child Abuse Investigation Unit said the nature and extent of Young’s sexual offending was “truly appalling”.

“Young is directly responsible for creating demand which contributes to the dreadful sexual abuse and suffering of the children in the images and videos he was creating and sharing.”

Lord Arthurson imposed an Order for Lifelong Restriction (OLR) on Young and ordered that he must serve a minimum term of 12 years in prison.

“The OLR is a unique sentence,” said DI Ure.

“It is made up of a minimum period of time of imprisonment called the punishment part – and a lifelong risk management. The OLR is a true lifelong sentence designed to protect the public from risk of serious harm.”

After Young’s home was raided and mobile phones were seized almost 20,000 indecent images and videos were found.

The court heard that Young, who was assessed as posing a high risk, told an expert who prepared a report on him that he was thinking constantly of abusing children.

Under the OLR, Young will only ever be released if the Parole Board decides it is no longer necessary for the protection of the public that he remain in prison.

The judge said Young’s crimes were of the “utmost gravity” and he had inflicted abuse on the most defenceless members of society.

Lord Arthurson told Young that when he is released, if ever, was a matter for the parole authorities.

Advocate depute Kath Harper previously told the court: “The case involves extensive and prolonged sexual offending by Benjamin Young against ten child complainers, all aged under 13 years at the time the offences were committed, and one adult (female) complainer.

“The accused’s offending encompasses, but is not limited to, voyeurism, sexual assault and rape involving young children. It also includes the creation and distribution of indecent videos and images of children, including videos of the accused raping and sexually abusing children.”

She said that in December 2022 Police Scotland received intelligence from the National Crime Agency that someone at Young’s address had distributed indecent images of children to a paedophile in Denmark. The material featured girls aged between one and six.

Police seized two mobile phones during searches.

The advocate depute said that because of the volume of images on one of the phones examination of the device was carried out for three months.

She said that some of the images showing child sexual exploitation were deemed to be “at the worst end of the spectrum”.

Young, who worked as a chef, was arrested on December 23 in 2022 and taken to Greenock police station. He was interviewed but remained silent.

Defence counsel Ronnie Renucci KC said a report prepared on Young made “rather grim reading” and indicated he has a number of complex and long-standing psychological issues and conditions.

He said: “He recognises the severity of his offences and the consequences of these offences to his victims. He recognises he has significant problems.”

The court made non-harassment orders banning Young from contacting or attempting to contact victims. He was placed on the sex offenders’ register indefinitely.