Police welcome guilty plea by Derry man to child sex-related offences

Police have welcomed a guilty plea by a 53-year-old man from Derry at Coleraine Crown Court, today.

Peter Anthony McGowan from Derry plead guilty to a total of ten charges including, sexual communication with a child, and possessing indecent and prohibited images of children.

Detective Inspector Richard Vasey from The Police Service of Northern Ireland’s Child Internet Protection Team said: “McGowan’s online behaviour triggered intelligence systems providing a referral to Police, which led to us conducting a search of his property.

“The search resulted in a number of electronic devices being seized for forensic examination, McGowan being arrested and later charged for child abuse offences.

“Our message is clear, if a person is downloading, viewing or making indecent images of children, you are leaving a digital footprint and we are actively looking for you.

“We will continue to do everything in our power to keep children safe.

“We will continue proactively targeting those people in our community who contribute to this cycle of abuse and I would encourage anyone with concerns or information to get in contact us on 101 or 999 in an emergency. We will act on the information we receive.”

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