Australian teacher granted bail in child exploitation material case
The Northam Magistrates Court in Western Australia has granted bail to 28-year-old teacher Darrell Kelvin Scott, who is accused of possessing and distributing child exploitation material. ABC News Australia reports.
Three charges
Scott attended the hearing via video link from Hakea Prison. He faces two charges of distributing child exploitation material and one charge of possessing it.
According to police prosecutors, at the time of the alleged offences he worked as a teacher at a high school in the Wheatbelt region, about 100 kilometres northeast of Perth. Scott lost his job after the charges were laid.
As ABC notes, there was no information presented during the hearing indicating that the alleged offences were connected to students or the man's work at the school.
Bail conditions
The court heard that police arrested Scott at an address in Northam earlier this month. During a preliminary examination of his mobile phone, investigators allegedly found three videos containing child exploitation material.
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Police also allege that Scott sent the videos to two users of the private messaging app Session. Prosecutors opposed his release on bail and said online correspondence found on the phone included discussions of fantasies about inappropriate conduct with students.
The court also heard that Scott admitted saving the videos on the device and subsequently deleting them. Magistrate Sarah Wisbey granted him bail, citing the absence of prior convictions and strict release conditions.
These include a personal undertaking of 5,000 Australian dollars and a surety for the same amount, living with his parents, one of whom is a police officer, no internet access, and a ban on unsupervised access to children. Scott did not enter a plea of guilty or not guilty. The next hearing in the case is scheduled for October.
Last week, Northam Senior High School informed parents and guardians about support services available to students affected by the staff member's court appearance.
