A Wilgeheuwel man will spend the next 10 years in prison for the possession of child pornography.
In February 2020, police raided the home of Eugene Trevor-Roberts where they would confiscate two of the man’s hard drives. Analyses by members of the Serial and Electronic Crimes Unit linked Trevor-Roberts’ IP address to downloads dating back to June 2019, with the specialist unit finding 385 individual images categorised by the Film and Publications Act as amounting to child pornography.
In October 2021, Trevor-Roberts pleaded guilty on all 385 counts and on January 20, the Roodepoort Magistrates’ Court handed down its sentence. In reaching her decision, Magistrate Delize Smith noted how this was the 59-year-old father of two’s first conviction but that his guilty plea was not mitigating. Magistrate Smith believed that while he appeared remorseful, there was no chance of rehabilitation, citing a psychologist’s report which stated that Trevor-Roberts was instead in denial of the severity of his actions.
Among the graphic material found in Trevor-Roberts’ possession, two images showed adult men sexually violating females aged between three and five. A total of 240 images showed girls aged between six and 12 engaged in sexual activity with adult men, while a further 143 were of similar acts with girls aged 13 to 17. Magistrate Smith noted how the age of the youngest victims made the crime especially heinous.
Similar cases where sentences of five and seven years were given were highlighted, but Magistrate Smith believed those to be inappropriate, stating that it was in the interest of society to impose a harsher sentence. Describing the acts as ‘reprehensible’, the magistrate stated that the victims were voiceless and that the court must act in the best interests of children, preventing them from being morally and socially degraded.
Trevor-Roberts’ defence sighted health issues as a reason for leniency, but the magistrate attached little weight to these, stating that any ailments that the man may have could be treated in prison. Avoiding the maximum penalty of 15 years, thus, Eugene Trevor-Roberts was sentenced to 10 years imprisonment and will have his name entered into the National Register of Sex Offenders.
