Abuse case man had porn 'compulsion'

Published on Thursday 23 April 2009 22:08

A MAN told a court yesterday that his initial shock at finding child pornography on the internet turned into a compulsion to view the indecent images.

John Milligan, 40, said he amassed more than 78,000 images, but insisted he never abused children. He spoke to other paedophiles in chat rooms about committing acts, such as snatching a boy at knifepoint and raping him, but it was purely boastful fantasy, he claimed.

Milligan, of Govan, Glasgow, denies conspiring to take part in sex offences against children, in particular a boy known to a co-accused, James Rennie, 38, of Edinburgh.

The High Court in Edinburgh heard that Milligan had known from a young age that he was gay. He tried to take his own life with an overdose before quitting Glasgow University, where he studied social sciences.

He found work as a civil servant, and moved away from his family into his own flat. His spare time was spent on his computer – up to eight hours a day.

Milligan said he began to download gay pornography, and some of it featured teens.

"I was shocked … and I deleted it. There was something drew me back, a compulsion or something. I wanted to see the images again ... I was aroused by them."

He told the court he met Rennie to view child pornography. He is charged with listening on the phone to Rennie abusing a boy, but he denies this.

Rennie is accused of indecency and conspiring to commit sex offences. The case continues.