A retired Melbourne teacher who was obsessed with the violent sexual abuse and torture of children has been jailed over plans to fly to Thailand to sexually abuse kids.
Bryan Douglas Cole, 72, is a sadistic pedophile, Victorian County Court Judge Mark Dean said on Monday as he sentenced the former teacher to five years in jail.
He said Cole had hundreds of images and videos of "repugnant and depraved" abuse of children that were uncovered on computers, USBs and an iPhone seized by police during raids in March this year.
An 18-month old girl was among the children abused in the videos, the court was told on Monday.
"You are a sadistic pedophile who has been unmasked," Judge Dean told Cole in sentencing.
The retired teacher had pleaded guilty to four child pornography charges, one count of preparing to engage in sexual intercourse with a child outside Australia and transmitting communications to a child under 16.
Judge Dean said online chat logs between Cole and other abusers showed the former teacher was "obsessed with the violent sexual abuse and torture of children".
The judge also suspected trips to Thailand and Cambodia in 2014 and 2015 by Cole were done for "sex tourism".
"You regard the children as little more than objects," Judge Dean said.
He said Cole's former roles as a primary and high school teacher and education administrator meant he had even higher moral culpability.
The court heard Cole's work had seen him travel to India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka to recruit students.
A psychologist has diagnosed Cole with a sex sadism disorder, pedophilia and anxiety from a recent prostate cancer diagnosis.
Judge Dean sentenced Cole to five years in prison, with a non-parole period of three years, backdated by 12 days already spent in custody.
Cole will be on the sex offender roll for the remainder of his life.
