Ireland Former psychiatric nurse jailed for three years over child pornography images
Philip Whelan (52), a former psychiatric nurse from Roscrea, County Tipperary, was found with 690 child pornography images and one video on a phone that gardaí seized in a search of his home in February 2020, and the images showed children as young as four. He was charged on 20 February 2022 and pleaded guilty to possession of child pornography under Section 6(1) of the Child Trafficking and Pornography Act, 1998. At Nenagh Circuit Court, Judge Catherine Staines set a headline sentence of four years and imposed three years, with the final six months suspended for two years under probation supervision, and ordered registration on the sex offenders register. The sentence was reported on 20 June 2024.
- Reportednot reported
- Arrestednot reported
- Chargednot reported
- In courtnot reported
- Verdictnot reported
- Sentenced19 Jun
2 reports
Key facts
consolidated from all reports- What happened
- Philip Whelan, a former psychiatric nurse, was found with 690 child pornography images and one video.
- Gardaí extracted the images and video, which showed children as young as four in sexual acts or sexually suggestive positions.
- Where
- Whelan lives at Roscrea, County Tipperary.
- Whelan was sentenced at Nenagh Circuit Court.
- When
- Gardaí searched Whelan's home in February 2020.
- Investigation
- Gardaí seized a Samsung Galaxy phone during the search and extracted the images and video from it.
- Charges
- Whelan was charged on 20 February 2022.
- Whelan pleaded guilty to possession of child pornography under Section 6(1) of the Child Trafficking and Pornography Act, 1998.
- In court
- Judge Catherine Staines set a headline sentence of four years.
- Sentence
- Whelan was given a three-year sentence, with the final six months suspended for two years under probation supervision.
- Whelan is to be registered on the sex offenders register.
- Other details
- In mitigation, Whelan had pleaded guilty and had no previous convictions.
- A probation report said Whelan is at low risk of reoffending.
- Whelan resigned from his job as a psychiatric nurse when the charges were brought.
21 statements extracted from the articles
- whatA former psychiatric nurse was found with 690 child pornography images and one video. (tipperarylive.ie)
- whatPhilip Whelan pleaded guilty to possession of child pornography. (offalyexpress.ie)
- whatA phone was found to contain 690 child pornography images and one video. (offalyexpress.ie)
- whatGardaí extracted images and a video showing children as young as four in sexual acts or sexually suggestive positions. (offalyexpress.ie)
- whereThe sentence was handed down at Nenagh Circuit Court. (tipperarylive.ie)
- whereThe sentence was imposed at Nenagh Circuit Court. (offalyexpress.ie)
- whenGardaí searched the defendant's home in February 2020. (tipperarylive.ie)
- investigationGardaí seized a Samsung Galaxy phone during the search. (tipperarylive.ie)
- investigationGardaí extracted 690 images and one video from the phone, depicting children as young as four. (tipperarylive.ie)
- investigationGardaí searched the defendant's home in February 2020 and seized a Samsung Galaxy phone. (offalyexpress.ie)
- chargeThe defendant was charged on 20 February 2022. (tipperarylive.ie)
- chargeThe defendant pleaded guilty to possession of child pornography under Section 6(1) of the Child Trafficking and Pornography Act, 1998. (tipperarylive.ie)
- chargeThe defendant was charged on February 20, 2022. (offalyexpress.ie)
- courtThe judge set a headline sentence of four years. (tipperarylive.ie)
- sentenceThe defendant was given a three-year sentence with the final six months suspended for two years under the supervision of the probation service. (tipperarylive.ie)
- sentenceThe defendant is to be registered on the sex offenders register. (tipperarylive.ie, offalyexpress.ie)
- sentenceJudge Catherine Staines set a headline sentence of four years. (offalyexpress.ie)
- sentenceA three-year sentence was imposed, with the final six months suspended for two years under probation supervision. (offalyexpress.ie)
- otherIn mitigation, the defendant had pleaded guilty and had no previous convictions. (tipperarylive.ie, offalyexpress.ie)
- otherA probation report said the defendant is at low risk of reoffending. (offalyexpress.ie)
- otherWhelan resigned from his job as a psychiatric nurse when the charges were brought. (offalyexpress.ie)
The reporting
newest first- 20 Jun2024Nurse from Roscrea found with almost 700 child pornography images jailed for three years
Reports the Nenagh Circuit Court sentencing of Philip Whelan, including the images found, the garda evidence, mitigation and the sentence.
convicted, Philip Whelan, 52, male, named, irish (judged from name)Philip Whelan - 19 Jun2024Nurse in Tipperary found with almost 700 child pornography images jailed for three years
Reports the sentencing: three years with the final six months suspended for two years, a headline sentence of four years, and registration on the sex offenders register. It adds the plea, the charge date, and the search and phone details.
convicted, Philip Whelan, 52, male, named, irish (judged from name)Philip Whelan