Primary school teacher who watched a live stream of child rape is jailed for 20 months
43-year-old joined 45 other paedophiles to watch the horrific abuse
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A primary school teacher who watched a live stream of a six-year-old boy being raped has been jailed for 20 months.
Wayne Brookes, 43, joined 45 other paedophiles online to watch the horrific abuse, which took place in America.
He accessed the online chat room in which the rape was streamed after being given a 10-digit code by another paedophile.
Married Brookes, of Weston-super-Mare, Somerset, also used the site to watch a recording of a six-month-old baby being abused.
Bristol Crown Court heard Brookes, who had worked as a teacher for 10 years, lost his job once the offences came to light.
He is the second of four men to be sentenced following an investigation into the chat room by the National Crime Agency (NCA).
Judge Martin Picton jailed Brookes, who admitted four charges of making indecent images of children, for 20 months.
“One of the pieces of footage depicted the live streaming of a rape of a little boy,” the judge told a weeping Brookes.
“I do give you the benefit of doubt with the issue of whether you understood that you were watching a live event.”
The judge said Brookes had kept his interest in young children a secret from his partner, viewing the indecent material “late at night”.
His offences would have caused “alarm and distress” to fellow teachers, parents and children at the school where he worked, the judge added.
“There is no suggestion that you accessed any indecent images at work or that you offended against any of the children that were in your care at that time,” he told Brookes.
The court heard Brookes was identified by officers after using a profile named Bear to access the chat room.
He was found to have downloaded more than 200 indecent images of children, included dozens at the highest category.
Brookes admitted his actions to officers following his arrest and his partner is standing by him, his barrister Virginia Cornwall said.
“He has demonstrated remorse and understanding for his criminality,” Miss Cornwall added. “He is a broken man.”
Speaking after the case, Colin Radcliffe, senior manager at the NCA, said Brookes should have been protecting and guiding children through his job.
“Instead he was active on an internet chat room where horrific abuse was being streamed for the participants’ sexual gratification,” he added.
“There are those out there who seek to harm children and who think they’re safe if they stay in dark corners of the internet.
“But the officers of the NCA and its partners are dedicated and are determined to detect offenders and bring them to justice.”
The rapist who broadcast the attack, William Chandler Augusta from Pennsylvania, was detected by Canadian authorities and arrested in the US in February.
He was jailed for up to 30 years for a range of offences. Police officers in the US identified his victim and protective measures were taken.
Last month, youth worker Darren Williams, 44, was jailed for 11 years for his part in the live stream of the rape.
Cardiff Crown Court heard Williams, of Blackwood, Newport, instructed the rapist to smack the victim and make him “say hi”.
He admitted encouraging or assisting the rape of a child and six charges of encouraging or assisting the showing of indecent images of children.
Philip Crabtree, 35, of Newcastle-under-Lyme, will be sentenced for 12 offences on a date to be set at Stoke Crown Court.
Christian Johnson Lueking, 36, of Raynes Park, London, admitted one offence of encouraging the showing of indecent images of children.
He will be sentenced at Kingston Crown Court on 18 August.
Press Association