A police forensic analysis expert has told a court of the discovery of photographs of young boys on a mobile phone taken from the home of an Angus man accused of possessing indecent images of children.
The jury trial at Forfar heard 22 ‘naturist’ images of boys aged 11 to 16 were found in a passcode-protected application on an iPhone seized after detectives searched the Kellas residence of Alasdair Chalmers, 60.
Chalmers, of West Steading, Mains of Gagie, denies that between March 20 2005 and April 26 2011, at his home address and elsewhere, he took or permitted to be taken or made indecent photographs or pseudo-photographs of children. He is also charged with possessing indecent photographs or pseudo-photographs of children between March 20 2005 and January 31 2014.
A detective constable attached to the cyber-crime unit at Dundee told depute fiscal Joanne Scott analysis of the iPhone 3 revealed 22 photographs of naked boys, with creation dates between July 2009 and July 2010. A further 24 images of boys in sportswear or underwear were also found.
Cross-examined by advocate Drew McKenzie, the detective accepted this was a small number of images at the lowest level for such material.
He agreed it was not possible to confirm when the phone was first used and where it had been before January 2014, or who set the user name.
The trial continues.