Woman encourages rape of babies, children, keeps hundreds of sexual abuse videos on phone
A Cumbernauld woman, Helen Hughes, who encouraged the rape of babies and children, as well as kept hundreds of sexual abuse videos and thousands of such in pictures on her phone has been remanded at the Airdrie Sheriff Court cell.
The 43-year-old Ms Hughes of Kilbowie Road admitted downloading the indecent materials between July 2024 and December 2025, and sharing them with other paedophiles, Glasgow Times reported on Thursday.
The woman, who also admitted sending messages encouraging the sexual abuse and rape of babies and children, was seen in court, weeping as she was led to the cell.
According to the prosecuting counsel, Steven Lynch, the police searched her home and seized a mobile phone and a tablet for analysis by specialist officers.
After analysing the devices, the officers found 8,283 photographs showing children being sexually abused, with over 1,000 of those images rated Category A, the most depraved. They also found 840 videos, 633 of which were in Category A.
Mr Lynch told the court that, “Analysis of the devices showed the accused engaged with others in conversations discussing and encouraging the sexual abuse of children and infants. She distributed 27 Category A videos and 1 Category B video to other users on social media apps. Most were sent to a user named Filthy One.”
Sheriff Paul Haran said, “You have pleaded guilty to serious offences involving not only possession but distribution of child sexual abuse material. The matter is sufficiently serious that the likely outcome is a custodial sentence, so you will be remanded in custody in the meantime.”
The sheriff thereafter ordered that the defendant, who was on bail before the court hearing, be kept in custody while background reports are prepared ahead of her sentencing.
The sheriff placed her name on the sex offenders’ register, and also ordered the destruction of her phone and tablet.
Hong Kong child sexual abuse cases surge 60% as NGO urges evidence-based prevention measures
NGO Against Child Abuse said on Wednesday that the rate of child abuse soared from 0.92 per 1,000 children in 2020 to 1.54 in 2025 – a 67 per cent increase over the six-year period – citing data from the Social Welfare Department’s Child Protection Registry.
For the first time in more than two decades, the number of child sexual abuse cases matched that of physical abuse cases against minors, with 501 cases recorded in 2025, the organisation said, calling the situation “concerning.” Physical abuse had long been the most common form of child maltreatment.
Patrick Cheung, chairperson of Against Child Abuse, attributed the sharp increase to a myriad of factors, including the Covid-19 pandemic, economic downturn, parenting style changes, as well as recent legislation such as the Mandatory Reporting of Child Abuse Ordinance, which was enacted in January.
In particular, Cheung said the rise of child sexual abuse was related to internet activities and highlighted the increasing problem of online sexual grooming targeting minors.
“A lot of the times we see that the perpetrators of child sexual abuse are peers and people met on the internet,” Cheung said in Cantonese during a press conference.
Long-term harm
Patrick Ip, clinical professor at the University of Hong Kong’s Department of Paediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, said studies over the past decade had found that child abuse could inflict long-term harm on children across their social, psychological, behavioural, and biological development.
One 2024 study showed that child abuse survivors exhibited a higher chance of obesity – potentially due to impairment to the brain’s prefrontal lobe, which specialises in self-regulation – while a study in 2022 found that victims reported higher inflammatory responses years after the maltreatment took place, Ip said.
Ip also noted that “family dysfunction” has become a severe problem in recent years, especially during the Covid-19 pandemic, when children had to stay home for schooling due to prolonged class suspensions.
“Not only does [family dysfunction] diminish familial bonding, it also makes parents incapable and unwilling to maintain quality interactions with their children,” Ip said in Cantonese.
“It creates a scenario in which children become used to facing their problems alone. And when there isn’t a good buffering system or support system for struggling children and parents alike, the risk of abuse increases,” he added.
Multi-pronged measures
But Ip also pointed to a 2022 study that found “positive parenting intervention” – meaning professional support regarding parenting style and emotion management – can improve parent-child interactions in low-income households.
The results showed that parenting outcomes are modifiable with the appropriate intervention, which also lowers the risk of child abuse, he said.
The NGO called on society as a whole to raise awareness around the long-term consequences of child abuse and to increase sensitivity about high-risk families, enabling early identification and support.
It also supported calls on authorities to introduce an offence of persistent child sexual abuse in upcoming sex law reforms, which have been championed by rights groups.
Asked whether the city should follow countries such as Australia in banning children from social media, Cheung said the city should adopt a multi-pronged approach to prevent online sexual abuse against minors.
Society needs to step up education for children regarding how to ensure safety online, while social media platforms should implement measures protecting minors from predators, he said.
Gwynedd child sex abuse survivor encourages others to speak out
A SURVIVOR of child sexual abuse in Gwynedd has encouraged others who have had similar experiences but are afraid of speaking out to “take the leap”.
The survivor, who is entitled to anonymity, was abused by Timothy Jones, whose actions were described in court last week as “terrifying”.
Jones, 49, of Lon Y Bedw, Bangor, was jailed for 15 years at Caernarfon Crown Court on September 15, after he was found guilty after a trial of sexual assault and sexual activity with a child.
Speaking to the Chronicle post-sentencing, the survivor of his abuse said the sentence left them feeling “so relieved,” and said the support they have received has been “overwhelming”.
The survivor said: “It’s a huge, huge relief. I was so thankful that I had the evidence I did for him to get the length of the sentence he got. Now, it’s just about taking each day as it comes.
“Every day is different. The amount of people, including other victims, who have reached out to me, has been absolutely overwhelming. It makes me feel like I’ve done some good.”
The survivor first told a friend about Jones’ abuse shortly after it happened, seeking reassurance that his behaviour was “justified”.
Despite being urged to tell police then, the survivor felt “no-one would be believe me”.
Police were later made aware of Jones’ abuse after the survivor confronted him via Facebook Messenger.
When officers came to speak to the survivor, they disclosed all that he had done to them.
“I told them everything,” the survivor said.
“It was one of the hardest things I’ve ever done, but also one of the easiest. It felt so real; everything happening all at once was scary after I’d kept quiet, but I also felt empowered.
“It just felt so relieving to finally get it out there.”
Jones watched the sentencing hearing with his arms folded from custody via videolink, during which the survivor read out a statement, detailing the impact of his abuse on them.
In the statement, the survivor spoke of how they have contemplated suicide on multiple occasions and have self-harmed, while they experience flashbacks “every single day”.
The judge, Timothy Petts, commended the survivor for speaking in court about the effect of Jones’ “dreadful” offences on them.
Judge Petts’ comments “meant a lot” to the survivor, and left them with “goosebumps”.
They said: “I needed to see it through to the very end. I needed to see and hear it for myself. I wanted it to be as raw and as real as possible.
“He just sat there with his arms crossed. I didn’t sense any expression.
“I thought it was a very good sentence. His actions have affected me for more years than he’s going to be in prison for, but it was still a better sentence than I expected.”
Jones will not be freed from prison until he has served at least 10 years of his 15-year sentence, and then only if the Parole Board deems his release safe.
Once released, Jones will serve the remainder of his 15-year sentence on licence, as well as an additional year on licence.
Judge Petts also imposed a sexual harm prevention order, to last for 25 years, telling Jones he had caused the survivor “very serious psychological harm”.
The survivor added: “I’ve tried not to let it affect who I am as a person. I had a traumatic childhood, but I like to believe I’m a good person.
“Sometimes I’m not as patient as I wish I was, but aside from that, I always try to be kind to others, and be the best person I can be.
“I’ve done my best to not let his actions impact who I am. I have my circle of supportive people who I have an ironclad bond with. I really do have good people in my life.”
To other survivors of abuse who may fear the consequences of speaking out, they said: “I would tell them to only talk to the people they trust the most.
“If they need help, go to therapy, because therapy doesn’t just help you mentally, it leaves a paper trail.“Take the leap. It’s going to be really, really hard and it will take a long time, but it will be so worth it in the end.”
Further claims to be brought in Celtic
Boys Club abuse case
Lawyers who represented the victims of abuse at Celtic Boys Club say more claims will be brought against the Premiership club after further survivors came forward.
Several former coaches and officials at the youth club have been sentenced for child sex abuse, but Celtic FC argued that the Boys Club was a separate entity.
Last year it agreed to settle with the plaintiffs in a class action lawsuit for a seven-figure sum, saying it was "appalled by any form of historic abuse and has great sympathy for those who suffered abuse and for their families".
On Thursday evening, RTÉ will broadcast a documentary about the abuse scandal, featuring a Dublin man who moved to Glasgow aged 15.
Read More:
- Celtic settle historic child abuse cases, lawyers confirm
- Celtic abuse scandal timeline as settlement is reached
- Celtic settle 24 child sex abuse cases, other claims ongoing
Also interviewed is Patrick McGuire, a partner at Glasgow-based law firm Thompsons Solicitors.
Thompsons represented the survivors in the suit settled by Celtic, and have said more cases are in the pipeline.
Mr Maguire said: "I think I can say without any hyperbole that the abuse at Celtic Boys Club is the worst instance of abuse at any sports institution in the UK.
"We represented victims who were abused from the '70s all the way through to the '90s. And by going with group proceedings, representing all of those people over all of that period of time, that allowed us to take advantage of what the Scottish courts allow in terms of group proceedings and document recovery.
"Since the case settled, since we began to publish that fact, many more victim survivors have come forward. So, there will be more cases, there will be more claims."
Former Celtic Boys Club manager James Torbett had been found guilty in 1998 of shameless and indecent conduct with three juvenile players between October 1967 and March 1974, when he was let go, and was imprisoned for 30 months.
He was subsequently allowed to return to the club where he continued to abuse young boys in the 1980s and 90s, and was found guilty in 2018 of a further five offences against three boys and in 2023 of another four charges against a then 13-year-old.
Former Celtic Boys Club chairman Gerald King was convicted of five charges of using lewd and libidinous practises towards five victims between August 1984 and April 1989, and found guilty of taking indecent pictures of children in February 1987.
Frank Cairney, a former coach and manager, was found guilty of nine charges of sexual abuse in 2018, receiving a four-year jail sentence, and was due to stand trial on another three indecent assaults in January 2023 but was deemed unfit for trial.
It was later determined by a judge that on the balance of probabilities there was no case to acquit him.
Jim McCafferty, a coach and kit man, admitted to 12 charges related to child sex abuse against 10 teenage boys between 1972 and 1996 in 2019.
He had also worked with Hibs and Falkirk, and died in prison in 2022.
The RTÉ documentary will focus on the story of Declan Roche, one of the men who brought a claim against Celtic.
He moved to Glasgow in 1986 to play for Celtic Boys Club, where he was assaulted by Cairney.
Mr Roche told the broadcaster: "I do believe it was probably the biggest mistake or decision I have made over my life.
"I just didn't want to tell anybody. I didn't want to tell my family at the time because I was still wanting to be a football player. I still wanted to be what I set out to be.
"Celtic Boys Club were a very strong boys club, you know, connected to Celtic, and if you played for Celtic Boys Club... it was an honour in many ways and he (Cairney) would have used that power well."
Celtic FC have been contacted for comment.
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