Man stole photos for paedophiles, court told

A Kapiti Coast technician stole family photos of children from computers brought to him for repair and then supplied them to an international network of paedophiles, a court has been told.

Ian Mead, 47, who ran a Raumati computer shop until earlier this year and now lives in Havelock North, is facing 97 counts of possessing objectionable photos, possessing them for supply and distribution, and accessing computer systems for dishonest purposes.

He has not entered a plea, and is due to appear in Porirua District Court on December 22, the Dominion Post reported.

Police prosecutor Nigel Wolland told Hastings District Court yesterday that investigators examining Mead's computers found photographs of children he had stolen from computers brought to him for repair.

He had 120,000 files on one hard drive.

Mead, who has lived in New Zealand since 2004, would eventually face further charges in Britain with assistance from Cambodian authorities, Mr Wolland said.

Police arrested him at Auckland Airport on November 23.

He was granted bail in Porirua District Court on December 1, but arrested in Havelock North last Sunday after breaching a condition that he not have contact with anyone under the age of 16 except his children.

Mr Wolland said police opposed renewal of Mead's bail, on the grounds that his home was in an area with many young families, and that he might interfere with witnesses involved in continuing investigations into his activities, including interviews with his children.

Defence counsel Eric Forster said Mead was happy to surrender all home computers to police and now realised he must prohibit his children from bringing their friends home.

Judge Anne Gaskell renewed his bail, but ordered that Mead not be released until every electronic and digital device capable of accessing the internet had been removed from his house.

- NZPA