A prominent junior sports coach from Dubbo will spend time behind bars after after pursuing an online sexual relationship with what he believed was a 13-year-old girl, where he instructed her to masturbate with fruits and vegetables.
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Shane Thomas Glynn, 48, was caught last year talking to members of the NSW Police Force's Child Exploitation Internet Unit, who were posing as a 13-year-old girl aiming to catch predators on the internet.
In February the former manager of the BCF store in Dubbo pleaded guilty to one count of using a carriage service to procure a person under the age of 16 for sexual activity, and one count of using a carriage service to attempt to engage in sexual activity with a person under 16.
Details of the explicit conversations, which occurred 25 times from February to June 2020, were outlined in a statement of agreed facts.
The offending began when Glynn was on a free social networking site and began a conversation with undercover police, known as CEIU41.
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During the conversation he was told he was talking to a 13-year-old girl, and when exchanging details about connecting on video messaging service Skype asked if the girl would tell her mum.
After CEIU41 said the details would be kept private unless Glynn wanted her to tell her, he said "I don't think that would be a good idea"," court documents read.
Their conversations moved to Skype, where Glynn used the ID 'shaneg541' to repeatedly engage in conversations with CEIU41 until June 2020.
On one occasion in February, Glynn sent "I'm not sure it's a good idea to send you a pic of myself because I'm too old for you, I'll get myself into trouble".
"Your a minor ... cause your not 16 ... I could be labelled as a petofile [sic]," he told CEIU41 before she asked what a paedophile was.
"Someone who takes sexual advantage of minors," he told her.
On March 3, Glynn asked asked CEIU41 if she had ever performed oral sex on a male, and told her it was "like sucking a lolly pop, or an icy pole".
On April 8, Glynn told CEIU41 he could go to jail if he engaged in sexual conversation with her, but encouraged her "he couldn't stop her doing what ever" she wanted, he just couldn't engage.
"I think you are wonderful cause you seem so grown up for your age," Glynn told the girl.
"Do me a video dance."
He later asked CEIU41 what time her mum got home, and if she went through her photos on her phone. He also sent an offline message asking if she deleted these chats.
A few days later he told CEIU41 he had an erection in the shower while thinking about her and encouraged her to masturbate.
CEIU41 said she didn't know what that was, when Glynn told her "you can do it on yourself".
"Have you put something in there ... finger, carrot, banana, something like that," he asked her.
"It's all about exploring ... I can't tell you, you should or shouldn't it's up to you."
Later on Glynn then sent a recorded video showing two fingers simulating a back-and-forth motion on a piece of paper, demonstrating how to masturbate, and the next day encouraged CEIU41 to practice.
On May 13, Glynn told CEIU41 he was deciding whether to keep working or "go and be naughty ... go an play with myself", asking her if she wanted to watch.
Glynn turned on his video camera and focused on his shoes.
CEIU41 said "all I can see is shoes" before saying "I thought u were gonna show me ur thing [sic]".
According to court documents, Glynn then moved the camera toward his erect penis and could be seen masturbating, which CEIU41 said "wow" and "it looks big".
Glynn was arrested by police at the BCF store on Whylandra Street in Dubbo on July 9, 2020.
In an interview with police Glynn initially claimed he thought he was speaking to someone in their 60s, but later acknowledged CEIU41 had disclosed they were 13-years-old.
He told officers the girl "sounded like she needed a friend ... or a father figure".
He said he had instructed her to masturbate because he was "trying to help her ... with life" and "trying to help her self, discover herself".
He told police he was "not proud of this" and claimed he wanted to see the photos to "reassure her that she was a ... lovely girl".
On Monday the Dubbo District Court heard Glynn was deeply regretful and remorseful and embarrassed by his offending.
In a letter of apology read out in court the father of two, said he was glad the victim wasn't real, and realised his actions could have impacted a real child for the rest of their life.
References of support from friends including real estate agent in Dubbo Karen Chant whose son worked at BCF alongside Glynn, and Jon Fuller who knew Glynn through his children's sporting efforts, were read aloud in court.
Glynn's uncle, former police officer and prosecutor Terry Glynn, also supported his nephew in his statement.
Defence barrister Edward Anderson said Glynn had been subject to public humiliation, was shunned by family and friends, lost employment and had received several death threats since news of the offence occurred, which should reduce the weight for punishment.
He believed Glynn should receive leniency, citing the "sharp downturn" of his mental health - which he had since sought rehabilitation for.
"He lost his employment, he's lost his reputation and he's been exposed to online abuse, shunned by friends and suffered dislocation in his family life," the court heard.
"He's demonstrated a wish to rehabilitate and has put into practice steps in that direction. He's had to relocate, he's been put in a position of public humiliation, he was a prominent popular person but when this offending was revealed it was loudly denounced in the local media."
However, the Crown argued a custodial sentence was necessary, and despite police posing as a young girl, Glynn knew the wrongness of his behaviour.
"The offender set out to establish trust with the online identity, sought photographs, he prioritised his sexual gratification over the interest of the person he believed to be a 13-year-old girl, and that in all the circumstances the procuring charge, is not at the lower end [of seriousness]," the court heard.
In sentencing Judge Nanette Williams called Glynn's actions "repulsive", "brazen" and "calculated".
She said the conversations outlined in the facts were "lewd" and "challenging for a court to read",
"Moreover the tone of the conversation included a mentoring-type one of a teacher and a guide, which in my view made the conversation more distasteful," she said.
Judge Williams believed Glynn knew his conduct was both criminally and morally wrong, but continued in a "deliberate and perseverant manner" to continue talking to the teen.
"Moreover this is demonstrated by a number of inquiries with respect to what level of supervision the online identity persona had, and whether or not their mother checked. There was also an indication to delete messages," she said.
"At one stage he tells the online persona that he could get into trouble and go to jail if his offending was found out. Clearly this was a calculated risk on behalf of the offender,"
While she accepted his remorse was genuine, and granted a 25 per cent discount for his early plea of guilt, she said full time custody was inevitable.
Glynn was imprisoned for two years and 10 months. He will be released from jail on recognizance after 14 months and placed on a two-year good behaviour bond.