INVERNESS MAN WAYNE DUNBAR ESCAPES JAIL AFTER CHILD PORNOGRAPHY OFFENSES
In April 2017, an incident involving Wayne Dunbar, a resident of Trafford Avenue in Inverness, came to light when he appeared before Inverness Sheriff Court to face charges related to the possession of indecent images of children.Dunbar, aged 47 at the time, pleaded guilty to the charges, which stemmed from activities that took place between April 7, 2016, and May 17, 2016, within his own home.
The case was not immediately sentenced; instead, Sheriff Margaret Neilson deferred the decision to allow for the preparation of criminal justice social work reports.
The court reconvened later to determine the appropriate punishment for Dunbar’s actions.
During the proceedings in April, depute fiscal Michelle Molley provided details of the police investigation.
Authorities had received intelligence indicating that illegal images had been downloaded onto devices located at Dunbar’s Trafford Avenue residence.
As part of the investigation, law enforcement officers seized a computer and a mobile phone from Dunbar’s home.
Following forensic analysis, investigators recovered a total of 227 images, with the majority stored on the computer.
Ms.
Molley explained that most of these images were at the lowest end of the obscenity scale, suggesting they were less severe in nature.
However, a more disturbing discovery was made on the mobile phone, which contained 46 images depicting female children as young as four years old.
Defense attorney Shahid Latif argued that the offenses occurred over a span of 42 days and emphasized that only one of the images was a moving picture.
He also highlighted that Dunbar had previously served time in custody and was experiencing emotional difficulties at the time of the offenses.
Mr.
Latif pointed out that the social work reports recommended an alternative to imprisonment, considering Dunbar’s circumstances.
Ultimately, Sheriff Neilson decided on a sentence that involved supervision and registration requirements.
Dunbar was placed on the Sex Offenders Register for a period of three years and was ordered to complete 200 hours of unpaid community service.
The court’s decision aimed to balance the seriousness of the offense with the defendant’s personal circumstances, opting for a supervised approach rather than incarceration.
