Bail refused for Gnowangerup man accused of exposing children to indecent matter online among fresh charges

A Gnowangerup man accused of using online accounts to expose a child to indecent matter and possessing child exploitation material has been refused bail, with the court told of historic child sex offences. Leo Edwin Nayda, 37, appeared before Albany Magistrates Court from police custody on Thursday, charged with 87 offences including using electronic communication to expose a child under 16 years to indecent matter, possessing child exploitation material, breaching a misconduct restraining order, and failing to comply with reporting obligations. Police prosecutor Sgt Meagan Diver told the court the prosecution was strongly opposed to granting Mr Nayda bail due to his long history of child sex offending. She said Mr Nayda had previously been convicted of using fake online accounts to engage with underage girls as young as 12 years old and asking them for explicit photos and encouraging them to engage in sexual acts with him. She said he had also been caught twice in covert police operations where officers had posed as 13-year-old and 16-year-old girls online in 2012, 2013 and 2018. Sgt Diver said Mr Nayda had a lifetime reporting obligation due to his lengthy history of similar offending, and had gone to “significant lengths” to avoid law enforcement detecting his online activities. She said the prosecution could find no further conditions to impose that would keep him from reoffending. She also added that there were further charges pending against Mr Nayda for allegedly using electronic communication to attempt to lure a 14-year-old girl to his house to engage in sexual activity, and said there was a “very strong” prosecution case against Mr Nayda, with imprisonment a likely outcome of the case. Mr Nayda’s duty lawyer acknowledged his client’s record was extensive, with multiple convictions and jail terms served for similar offending, but argued there were still conditions available to the court that could keep Mr Nayda on track, including only allowing him to access the internet for medical and banking. Magistrate Rosemarie Myers questioned whether this was the case, as most conditions were already covered under his current reporting obligations, which he continued to breach. Ms Myers said she was not confident anything further could be done to stop Mr Nayda offending and refused bail. He will next appear in Albany Magistrates Court on May 14.