JAMES WEIGHT FROM BURNTISLAND CAUGHT WITH CHILD ABUSE IMAGES WHILE ON COMMUNITY ORDER

In a disturbing development, James Weight, a resident of Burntisland, was found to be in possession of illicit child abuse images on his mobile phone while he was awaiting sentencing for a previous sex-related offence. The discovery was made during routine checks conducted by social workers as part of a report assessing his compliance with a community payback order.

Weight, who has a history of sexual offences, was placed back on the sex offenders register following the revelation of his possession of vile images and videos. The investigation was triggered when social workers examined his phone, which he had voluntarily provided for assessment purposes. During the forensic analysis, authorities uncovered 12 indecent images and 12 videos depicting children aged between five and 14 engaged in sexual activities. Some of these images were classified as Category A, indicating the most severe level of abuse.

Details of the original sex crime committed by Weight were not disclosed during the proceedings at Kirkcaldy Sheriff Court. However, the recent findings led to his re-arrest and subsequent court appearance. On May 6, 2023, at his residence on Melville Gardens in Burntisland, he admitted to downloading indecent images of children. His appearance in court was marked by him wearing a hoodie with the phrase “Stuck between IDK (I don’t know), IDC (I don’t care) and IDGAF (I don’t give a f***).”

Gino Gambale, representing Weight, acknowledged his client’s previous conviction from earlier in 2023 for a sexual offence. Gambale emphasized that Weight could benefit from a community payback order with supervision, noting that a significant period remained on his current order. He also highlighted that Weight was a full-time carer for his mother and had been engaging positively with the conditions of his supervision.

Despite these factors, the court was warned of the “very real risk” that Weight could face imprisonment if he breaches his current sentence. Sheriff Robert More sentenced him to 120 hours of unpaid work as an alternative to custody and mandated his participation in the Moving Forward To Change programme. Additionally, Weight was placed under supervision and registered as a sex offender for two years.

Sheriff More commented on the case, stating, “It’s not an unusual case because the court deals with this sort of thing all the time. It seems to have been committed at a time you were awaiting sentence for something entirely analogous. You have not committed any analogous crimes or offences after you were placed on the order, so the order is working. With that said, having regard to the nature of the images you accessed, there does require to be a punitive aspect. If you breach this order, you would be at very real risk of being sent to prison.”

Weight’s criminal history also includes a threatening incident involving his sister. In April of the previous year, he was sentenced to 100 hours of unpaid work at Dunfermline Sheriff Court after threatening her following an argument where she called him a “paedophile.” The incident escalated when Weight threatened to punch her and later went to her house in Aberdour, banging and kicking her door on February 23, 2024, demanding entry. During the court hearing, he admitted to behaving in a threatening and abusive manner, with prosecutors describing the incident as a result of a heated exchange that turned aggressive. Police were called, but Weight arrived before officers and continued shouting threats, refusing to cease his behaviour.