Pedophile who directed abuse over Internet loses appeal of five-year jail term

HALIFAX – A Nova Scotia pedophile who directed the abuse of young Filipino children over the Internet has lost his appeal of a five-year jail sentence.

Jason Troy Pitts had adults in the Philippines direct children to perform sexual acts, including a woman he paid to perform acts with a girl aged between eight and 11 years whom she said was her daughter.

Pitts admitted he is a pedophile, and pleaded guilty to 11 charges, for which he received a seven-year sentence.

He appealed a five-year portion of that sentence, for eight counts of conspiracy to sexually assault children, arguing the sentence was “hard and excessive.”

In a decision released Thursday, the Nova Scotia Court of Appeal rejected the argument, noting Pitts had a previous conviction for sexual interference with a child, and an assessment found him a “high risk” to re-offend.

It said the crimes carry a maximum sentence of 10 years and “it is difficult to see how a sentence of five years in these circumstances is harsh or excessive.”