Former teacher admits to child porn

A former Perth teacher caught with child pornography claims he does not have a sexual interest in children despite admitting he accessed such material for almost a decade.

The former teacher, whose name is suppressed, appeared in Perth District Court today to be sentenced for possessing child exploitation material.

But his sentencing was adjourned for a trial of the issues after lawyer Simon Freitag said the man denied having a sexual interest in children.

He said the man, who admitted accessing such material for nine years, did not view it for sexual gratification but "more in the nature of a punishment to himself and an illicit thrill in accessing the material".

District Court Judge Simon Stone told the man he had made a significant contribution to the child exploitation market.

Prosecutors argued that chat logs indicated the man had a "clear sexual interest in children", including one conversation where the man was asked "how long have you been into little children" and he replied "always".

The court was told he had dozens of images and videos of child pornography involving boys, including 79 images and 55 videos deemed to be in one of the most serious categories.

The man was charged as part of an international investigation into a Canadian website in which more than 300 arrests were made around the world, including six in WA.

Former police officer Lynton John Moore, who was also charged following the international investigation, was last month jailed for 2 1/2 years for possessing child pornography.

Judge Stone remanded the former teacher in custody for a trial of the issues and sentencing in February.

The man mouthed "I love you" to supporters in the courtroom as he was led from the dock.