The former head of a haulage industry organisation has avoided a jail term after being caught with a stash of child abuse images.
Phil Flanders, the former director for Scotland and Northern Ireland of the Road Haulage Association, was caught with indecent images of children at his home in Wormit, Fife.
Dundee Sheriff Court heard that he had downloaded the images between January 2008 and June 2015 at his home address.
Flanders, who was named Scottish Road Haulage Personality of the Year at an awards ceremony in 2013 before retiring the following year, had denied the charges.
But a sheriff found him guilty of two offences.
He had faced jail when he returned for sentence – but instead a community payback order was imposed and he was placed on the sex offenders register.
Flanders, 65, now of Eastriggs, Annan, denied charges of taking or making and possessing indecent images of children on summary complaint but was convicted of both charges.
Sheriff Keith O’Mahoney told Flanders a prison sentence was open to him but said he was able to move away from that and impose a community payback order.
He placed him under supervision for two years and ordered him to complete 240 hours of unpaid work in the community.
Flanders was also placed on the sex offenders register for two years.
