Youth football coach jailed for trying to film teenager in shower

Scott Ferrie, 29, hid his mobile phone in a toilet bag in a bid to to video a 13-year-old boy washing himself at the David Lloyd sports centre in Edinburgh’s Glasgow Road in June 2011.

The city’s sheriff court heard how Ferrie was caught by his victim shoving the doctored bag between a 2ft gap at the bottom of his cubicle.

Officers who arrested the pervert then discovered more than 550 sick snaps of kids - including young boys tied up with rope - on his computer.

Ferrie, who helped coach kids soccer side Tynecastle FC, was then taken into custody by detectives.

The former school classroom assistant was today jailed and placed on the Sex Offenders Register for 10 years by Sheriff Paul Arthurson QC.

He also made an order banning Ferrie from ever working with children again.

Passing sentence, Sheriff Arthurson said: “In order to reflect society’s disapproval with these crimes, I can only impose a custodial sentence on you.”

Ferrie, of Currie, Midlothian, pleaded guilty to illegally filming an underage child and downloading child porn from the internet at a hearing last month.

Sentence had been deferred until today in order for the court to obtain reports.

Ferrie’s solicitor Graeme Runcie said his client had realised that he shouldn’t have tried to film the young lad taking a shower.

Mr Runcie said that his client was a first offender who hadn’t been before the courts before.

Mr Runcie also said that parents of youngsters at Tynecastle FC had once complained about his behaviour on a trip that the club had made to Amsterdam in the Netherlands in 2009.

He said the football team had missed a flight back to Scotland and that some guardians of the children complained that their kids may have been placed at risk of harm.

But Mr Runcie said that his client had done nothing wrong on the trip and that the children had never been at risk of falling victim to sexual attack.

Mr Runcie also said that a social work report stated that Ferrie was at low risk of re-offending and he appealed for Sheriff Arthurson not to jail his client.

Talking about the Dutch incident, Mr Runcie added: “He had taken the children for a pizza. For the offences to which he has pleaded guilty to, Mr Ferrie expresses genuine remorse.

“He accepts that what he did was wrong and he is willing to undertake some form of punishment for his actions.”

However, Sheriff Arthurson said imposing jail time was the only sentence available to him.

Sheriff Arthurson added: “I take into account your plea of guilty and your status as a first offender. However, the only appropriate disposal here is the imposition of a custodial sentence.”