Edinburgh primary school play assistant snared by paedophile hunters after sending sleazy pictures

he group later confronted Tomney about the photos outside Blackhall Primary School where he worked at in Edinburgh

Euan Tomney, 23, was working as a play assistant at an after school club when he made contact with an online account he believed to be owned by a teen called Ben Holmes.

He chatted on dating app Skout to a decoy before making perverted comments about sex and asked if the boy had measured his privates.

Tomney then took the chat to WhatsApp and then sent several indecent images unaware that Ben was actually a fake account set up by group Groom Resisters Scotland.

He sent a message saying "I think about sex all the time - I am always horny" before asking the boy to "trade pictures" of their privates.

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Tomney later appeared at Edinburgh Sheriff Court and admitted intentionally sending written communication and sexual images in May last year.

He was placed under supervision for 18 months by Sheriff Frank Crowe who also put him on the sex offenders' register for the same amount of time.

A hearing of the Scottish Social Services Council (SSSC) has now seen Tomney struck off their register and blasted for failing to show any remorse for his actions.

In a written ruling, the SSSC said: "The very nature of your conviction was a serious public protection risk.

"You were employed as a practitioner in the Practitioners in Day Care of Children Services part of the register. Your behaviour was a premeditated act of sexual communication towards someone you believed to be a child.

"If you were allowed to continue to practice, this would raise an acute risk towards service users.

"The panel considered that the behaviour which constituted your conviction was very serious.

"The public should have confidence in the SSSC as regulator and in the profession. Your conduct falls far short of the conduct expected of a social services worker.

"You have not demonstrated any insight into your behaviour nor have you taken the opportunity to demonstrate any remorse into your conduct.

"Your behaviour took place over an eight day period and, given this, together with your complete lack of engagement with the SSSC, the panel considers that the risk of repetition of your behaviour is high."

Tomney was immediately sacked and his mother, who also worked in the same school, also lost her job.

Following his removal from the register, a spokesman for childcare provider OSCARS said: "Euan Tomney's employment with OSCARS Childcare was terminated in May 2018 following an incident he was involved in.

"The incident had no connection to OSCARS and did not involve any of our clients or any other staff member.

"OSCARS has a strict recruitment policy for all staff working within our venues.

"As current legislation demands all staff undergo safer recruitment procedures including PVG certification, and do not commence work until clearance and certification have been received from the relevant authorities.

"This was the case with Mr Tomney. OSCARS has no further comment."