A man who phoned charity workers and told them he was having fantasies about raping and murdering children has avoided a jail term.
Sacha Parkin called the NSPCC helpline on November 4 and gave them his details before launching into graphic descriptions of the violent acts he wanted to commit.
At the time he was living near a young boy who he described as “attractive”.
His lawyer told Dundee Sheriff Court the call was a “cry for help”.
Depute fiscal Eilidh Robertson told the court the shocked operator called police, who attended at Parkin’s home in Auchterarder the following day.
She said: “The operator was alarmed during the call due to the sexualised and graphic descriptions given.
“He added that he watched violent porn including rape.
“He spoke about meeting the operator face to face in a hypothetical situation and said she’d find him creepy.
“When police went to his house he explained he dreams of raping and killing children.
“He said he was struggling to control his urges and that it was ‘only a matter of time’.”
Parkin, 45, a prisoner at Perth, pleaded guilty on indictment to a charge of behaving in a threatening and abusive manner on November 4 and 5.
Sheriff Alistair Carmichael imposed a community payback order with three years’ supervision and psychological treatment.
He also ordered Parkin to undertake a sex offender’s groupwork programme and banned him from parks and swimming pools or from approaching or contacting children aged under 17.