A convicted British paedophile was running talent competitions for children as young as seven in Galway and Cork for over a year before being tracked down and arrested in Kerry last month.
Registered Sex Offender, Sean Johnson (33), from Derbyshire, had been using false names to evade detection and was renting rooms in both cities to hold bogus video auditions for children, some as young as seven, promising their parents and agents that they would be cast in children's TV series.
Johnson appeared in custody before Galway District Court where he pleaded guilty to living in this jurisdiction between November 13th, 2013 and February 1at, 2014, without notifying gardaí, as required because he is a registered sex offender.
Garda Pat Fahy told the court that he and Det Sgt Adrian O’Neill became aware on January 31st, 2014 that Johnson was renting a room in a public library in Westside, Galway under the name of Alex Quinn for the purpose of auditioning children for a bogus TV series.
Johnson was staying in a local hostel where a member of staff became suspicious of him and rang gardaí.
Gardaí contacted the British police and they confirmed Johnson was a registered sex offender having being convicted in 2009 for possessing child pornography. He received a four-month prison sentence at the time and was disqualified from working with children indefinitely.
The gardaí went to the rented room in the library on February 1st, 2014 and found a number of children, some as young as seven, being videod by the accused as part of an audition for a bogus TV series.
He was brought before Galway District Court on February 1st last year and spent two months in custody before being released.
Johnson went to Cork where he started to audition more children for a bogus talent competition using the name Alexander Reid.
He was arrested again.
Judge Mary Fahy said it was very foolish of parents to put their very young children forward for auditions without checking out Johnson's credentials first.
Imposing a 11-month sentence on Johnson for failing to notify gardaí he was in this jurisdiction, Judge Fahy said the message had to go out to “like-minded” individuals, whom, she said, networked and knew each other well, that such an offence carried a severe penalty in this country.