13 December 2021

Ainslie man facing child abuse charges granted bail

| Albert McKnight
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Angus Miles Gottaas-Hughes, 22, leaves court after being granted bail. Photo: Albert McKnight

UPDATED 9 December: A 22-year-old from Ainslie charged with child abuse offences has been released from custody on bail.

Angus Miles Gottaas-Hughes appeared in the ACT Magistrates Court on Thursday (9 December) where he was formally charged with two counts of allegedly possessing child abuse material on a computer.

His lawyer James Maher from Kamy Saeedi Law applied for bail which was not opposed, but prosecutor David Bloomfield did say he anticipated another charge would be laid against the man.

Magistrate James Stewart granted bail, with conditions including he report to police weekly and not go near a named person.

8 December: A seven-month investigation has culminated in the arrest of a young Canberra man for alleged child abuse offences, but he was taken for a mental health assessment when his case first appeared in court.

ACT Policing said members of the Joint Anti Child Exploitation Team received information from a foreign law enforcement agency in May 2021 about IP addresses being used to download child abuse material.

After the months-long investigation, police raided a home in Ainslie on Tuesday (7 December), seizing numerous electronic devices they allege contain the material.

READ ALSO Child rapist Stephen Porter asks to be locked up so he can ‘begin the clock’ on inevitable prison time

A 22-year-old Ainslie man was arrested and police said he would be charged with three counts of possessing child abuse material.

But when the man appeared in the ACT Magistrates Court the next day (8 December), Magistrate James Stewart did not formally charge him and ordered he be taken for a mental health assessment.

He will appear in court again in the future.

 

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