Description
A children's basketball coach talked about sexually abusing a baby and using it as his "f*** toy" during "depraved" online chats.
Stuart McNeil used to coach Cheshire Junior Jets as well as Warrington Collegiate and University of Chester basketball teams.
The 39-year-old, who was born with the spinal defect spina bifida, also carried the Paralympic Torch in 2012.
But he has now been outed as a paedophile who shared "horrific" child rape videos among the worst ever seen by one officer.
Liverpool Crown Court heard McNeil, of Baker Drive, Great Sutton, Ellesmere Port, used the messaging app Kik Messenger.
David Polglase, prosecuting, said: "Kik is a platform often favoured by those with an interest in the sexual abuse of children."
An undercover officer posed on Kik as a man living with his girlfriend, who was soon expecting their first child, in July 2019.
The officer joined a group on Kik called 'Babys', with 23 members, and ended up in a private conversation with McNeil.
Mr Polglase said: "The conversation quickly turned towards fantasies about sexually abusing the child of the couple when it was born."
McNeil asked the officer if he was going "to start early" with his child and said if he had a newborn baby, he would abuse them.
He sent a Category B indecent photo of a nine-month-old girl and asked the officer to send a photo of his baby when it was born.
On July 9, McNeil sent him a Category A film, involving a boy, aged seven, performing a sex act on another boy.
Mr Polglase said McNeil discussed how the officer "should start abusing the baby when it was born" and described the baby as a "f*** toy".
On July 22, McNeil shared a Category A video of a two-year-old child being raped in the 'Babys' group, then sent it directly to the officer.
The officer sent a photo of his supposed baby girl to McNeil, who asked whether he had abused her yet.
Mr Polglase said: "There was then discussion about meeting up so the baby could be abused together."
In a chat on July 24, McNeill said they could meet in a hotel near Liverpool or Chester and he would pay.
He later said he wouldn't be able to rape the baby because of his medical issues, but would sexually abuse her another way.
Mr Polglase said McNeil talked about getting into the hotel without raising suspicion and "hoping the child wouldn't cry".
He discussed other intentions too graphic to publish and twice encouraged the officer to abuse his baby.
McNeil also sent other images of children, aged between 12 months and 11-years-old, being raped.
Police raided his home on August 8, 2019 and seized his electronic devices.
Mr Polglase said: "Police were informed he was in Stockport with the England U15 basketball team. The police attended at the location and arrested him."
His sick collection featured 368 Category A images, including 56 videos; 329 Category B images, including 15 videos, and 604 Category C images, including 13 videos.
McNeil also had two extreme porn files and seven prohibited images of children.
Officers discovered he had been talking to others on Kik about abusing children and was in multiple groups.
Mr Polglase said in one conversation he spoke to a different undercover officer, posing as a 14-year-old girl.
McNeil asked for naked photos and images of this supposed girl rubbing herself.
He distributed videos involving the rape of babies "clearly in distress" and on 219 occasions shared other indecent photos.
Mr Polglase said: "The officer who examined these images described them as some of the worst he has seen in 18 years of this type of work."
McNeil, of previous good character, was twice interviewed by police, but remained silent.
He admitted three counts of downloading, one count of possessing and three counts of distributing indecent images, plus possessing prohibited images of children and extreme pornography.
McNeil also admitted two counts of intentionally encouraging an offence and two counts of inciting a child to engage in sexual activity.
Rick Holland, defending, accepted the material was "very disturbing".
He said McNeil lived an "isolated existence" and sought a "skewed solace in his communication and conversation with others".
Mr Holland said: "The defendant has really had no circle of friends to speak of, no associations, no hobbies really, nothing."
Judge Garrett Byrne said: "He must surely have known what he was doing was wrong. Those images are absolutely disgusting."
Mr Holland said: "They are outrageous, appalling and they are deeply sickening. He can recognise that now."
The lawyer quoted McNeil as saying he wanted "to apologise to everyone, my family, my friends, for everything I have put them through and the victims in the images I downloaded".
He said his client added: "Some people will never forgive me, but I am genuinely sorry."
Mr Holland suggested it was an "exceptional case" and urged the judge to spare McNeil jail.
He said McNeil had no feeling from the waist down since birth, the kidney condition hydronephrosis, bowel problems and bladder stones.
The lawyer said: "He is physically and emotionally vulnerable."
Judge Byrne said the offences took place over eight years, but most were from 2018 onwards.
He told McNeil: "You began to fantasise about sexually abusing the purported child when it was born and you sent explicit messages expressing your depraved desires."
The judge said of "great concern" was his apparent "complete inability to empathise" with a child he described as a "f*** toy".
He said "more sinister" was McNeil discussing meeting to abuse the child, however, no actual arrangement was made and he didn't have a fixed intention to do it.
Judge Byrne said in a letter McNeil's sister and brother-in-law made the point "you had worked in a school for 10 years and in basketball for 20 years, all without any complaint being made against you".
However, Judge Byrne said the videos were "horrific" and referring to one clip said: "I'm not even going to describe it."
He said his case was not exceptional and while prison would be difficult for him, every image was a victim of sexual abuse and he fuelled the market for it.
Judge Byrne said: "What was done to them is deeply appalling."
He said McNeil was "an offender of particular concern" and jailed him for two and a half years, with an extended year on licence.
McNeil must serve at least half of the term behind bars, before he can apply to the Parole Board.
He must comply with a Sexual Harm Prevention Order for six years and sign on the Sex Offenders Register for life.