Ex-RAAF member jailed at least two years over child abuse images
Bryan William Cooper, 40, was imprisoned for at least two years. Police found hundreds of child abuse images and videos on his devices.
Cooper pleaded guilty to four counts. These involved knowingly possessing and accessing child abuse material.
He was sentenced at Ballarat Magistrates' Court on Tuesday. His offences happened between 2019 and 2021.
During this time, he was already subject to sex offender registration requirements. Police first searched his home in December 2019 and found more than 100 classified images and videos.
Almost two years later, police searched his home again. They found 152 category-one images, eight category-one videos, 346 category-two images, and 13 category-two videos.
Cooper also breached court orders by using the dating app Grindr. Magistrate Mike Wardell noted Cooper's troubling history of similar convictions.
He called the material disturbing. He acknowledged Cooper's guilty plea and that no new offences had occurred since 2021.
- Bryan William Cooper, 40
- Subject and age
- Between 2019 and 2021
- Offence timeline
Why it mattersThis case shows how registered sex offenders can repeatedly breach monitoring requirements and accumulate illegal material. It shows how courts balance accountability with the rarity of new offences.
AustraliaAustralian law enforcement continues pursuing online child abuse material possession, a crime with thousands of victims depicted in images.
✓ Claims checked against the source and corrected before publish. checked 2 d ago
