Steven Bruce Cook, 62, appeared in the Invercargill District Court yesterday and was sentenced to 12 months’ home detention.
The Department of Internal Affairs said the defendant began communicating online with an undercover investigator in January last year.
Cook’s messages indicated he had a sexual interest in children, later sharing an image of child sexual abuse with the investigator.
Once it was discovered Cook was the person behind the accounts, a search warrant was executed at his address and multiple electronic devices being seized.
Forensic analysis of the devices found the defendant had 6,240 child sexual exploitation and abuse files, including 472 videos, with a total viewing time of over 38 hours.
"The victims ranged in age from babies to young people under the age of 16," the DIA said.
"Cook stated he liked having a collection and would occasionally watch the files for his own sexual gratification."
"He admitted that one of the seized hard drives was failing and he had been in the process of copying and converting his older child sexual exploitation files to a new format, so they were easier to play."
The defendant was not placed on the Child Sex Offender Register by the judge.
"These sentences send a clear message to offenders – if you engage in these abhorrent activities, you will be found and held to account" says Tim Houston, Manager Digital Child Exploitation Team.
"The concerned effort and cooperation of DIA and our partners is critical to tackling the proliferation of child abuse material and protecting children from abuse."
