A doctor who worked at the north-east’s flagship hospital was behind bars last night after being caught paying for the sexual services of children online.
Kieran Titheridge, who was a trainee at Aberdeen Royal Infirmary, made four payments over a period of two months to a woman living abroad.
In exchange for the cash the 34-year-old was allowed to choose from a range of girls – the woman claimed they ranged from three to 14-years-old – who he would watch on Skype while they stripped in front of a webcam.
Titheridge was also caught with hundreds of obscene images of children on his computer equipment after police raided his home in Aberdeen’s Union Grove.
The High Court in Aberdeen heard yesterday that officers launched an investigation after they were informed the medic had sent money via PayPal to an e-mail account between October 14, 2012 and December 26, 2102.
The court heard it was believed the e-mail address was linked to the abuse of children.
Officers then carried out a search of the property in Aberdeen, where he had lived on his own while working in the geriatrics department of the hospital, as well as his family home in Arbroath.
Laptops seized from both addresses were analysed and a total of 366 vile photographs of children and two indecent videos were recovered from various files.
Text messages sent through Skype revealed that the doctor had engaged in several conversations with a foreign woman in 2012.
The court heard Titheridge, of 22 South Street, Arbroath, had asked her if she had naked young girls and requested their age.
She then asked him if he wanted to “play” and initially informed him that he would have to pay her $30 for the service.
Confirming through Skype that he had sent payment, he requested to see a girl’s bottom before the conversation ended.
He sent a further three individual £10 pound payments for sexual services involving children to the woman on different dates.
The woman informed Titheridge on a later date that the children were sleeping so could not provide the service.
The court heard he got in touch with the woman again on November 20, asking: “Are the young girls awake?”
The doctor’s bank accounts confirmed that payments had been made to the woman.
Advocate depute Sheena Fraser, prosecuting, told the court: “The precise ages of the children can’t be determined, but it is acknowledged that the panel claims that the youngest child he saw would be 14 years old.”
Judge Lord Kinclaven said Titheridge had been convicted of “serious offences against children” before remanding him in custody.
He called for background reports and deferred sentence until February 25 at the High Court in Edinburgh.
