Steven Paul McInally: Glasgow soft play boss jailed in the US for 25 years over child abuse images
The 36-year-old was arrested after thousands of indecent pictures were discovered on his mobile phone when he was searched by border guards at Orlando International Airport.
Thursday 6 February 2025 11:23, UK
The owner of a Scottish soft play centre has been jailed for 25 years after being caught at a US airport with thousands of child sexual abuse images on his phone.聽
Steven Paul McInally, 36, was searched by border guards after arriving at Orlando International Airport in Florida for a holiday in August 2023.
According to court documents, some of the material found on his phone included images of children that had been taken during a sleepover at his home.
A forensic review revealed about 3,900 images and 70 videos of child sexual abuse on his device.
During a hearing in November, McInally pleaded guilty to transporting and possessing child sexual abuse material.
He returned to court last week, where he was sentenced to 25 years in a US federal prison by district judge Wendy D Berger.
It is understood that McInally, once a director of the now-dissolved World of Mascots, was the boss of the Go Wild soft play centre in Bridgeton, Glasgow.
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Following his arrest in the US, Police Scotland raided the premises.
A spokesperson for the force said following an investigation, McInally was made the subject of a report to the procurator fiscal in connection with alleged offences under the Sexual Offences (Scotland) Act 2009.
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The US Attorney's Office said the case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, an initiative launched in 2005 by the Department of Justice to "combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse".
A spokesperson added: "Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims."