Former garda tried to blame wife when caught with child sex abuse images

FORMER GARDA TRIED TO BLAME WIFE WHEN CAUGHT WITH CHILD SEX ABUSE IMAGES

John McHugh, aged 68 and from Tralee, was sentenced to 18 months in prison, with the last year of that sentence suspended.

He is also required to register as a sex offender for a decade.

During a court hearing, it was revealed that the retired Garda from County Kerry attempted to shift blame onto his wife after being found in possession of inappropriate images involving minors.

McHugh was convicted by a jury at Tralee Circuit Court on March 22nd, following a plea of not guilty to knowingly possessing such material.

He had downloaded and stored these images on his home computer between August 3rd, 2006, and May 28th, 2009.

Judge Pat Meghan commented that it would be "exceptionally difficult" for McHugh, given his former role, to face imprisonment.

He also noted that McHugh had attempted to blame his wife during police interviews and the trial for the presence of the images.

When police attended his residence with a warrant, McHugh admitted to searching online for "teen porn" but denied seeking out harmful images involving children.

He also claimed that law enforcement officials had exerted inappropriate pressure to coerce a confession, a claim the police refuted.

McHugh’s lawyer, Andrew Sexton SC, stated that his client had suffered significant consequences due to media coverage, although he was supported by his family during the court proceedings.

Sergeant Tim O’Keeffe from Tralee Garda station concurred, stating that McHugh was not considered a threat to children and that the material involved was of a very low level compared to other cases he had handled.