Ciaran Bright, 30 had searched for images of ‘young gymnast’ and ‘girl cheerleaders’ – police officers found a series of indecent images when they raided his Cardiff home
A sports coach was discovered with vile images showing child abuse after police raided his home and confiscated his mobile phone. Officers uncovered disturbing internet search terms on the device, including “young gymnast” and “girl cheerleaders”.
Ciaran Bright, 30, was visited by police at his Cardiff residence on July 25 last year following an investigation launched by South Wales Police. The force had received intelligence from social media platform Kik regarding someone uploading indecent images of children being sexually abused.
Cardiff Magistrates’ Court heard on Friday that a mobile phone was seized from the defendant, reports Wales Online. An analysis of the device led to the discovery of indecent images, comprising two category A images, two category B images and four category C images.
The images had been downloaded between April 2 and July 18, 2025. Search terms found on various internet browsers included “young gymnast”, “girl cheerleaders” and “children on leashes”.
Bright, of Pennsylvania, Pentwyn, subsequently admitted three counts of making indecent images of children.
The court was told he had no previous convictions.
According to his LinkedIn profile, Bright described himself as a director of SportsXtra and claimed to work with clubs including Cardiff City FC and Swansea City FC.
He also wrote: “I am now proud co-owner at Academy 3. We are an independent football academy with two centres in Wales (Cardiff and Swansea), we impact over 200 academy players each week and are always adding to our fantastic squad of players and coaching team.”
In mitigation, the court heard that the defendant’s life had “spiralled” due to his drug use, but he has since made efforts to address this.
It was noted that he has lost his career and is currently jobless, but his family remains supportive, and there was no evidence of direct contact with a child.
Bright received a nine-month prison sentence, suspended for 18 months. The defendant was ordered to complete a 14-day rehabilitation activity requirement and 200 hours of unpaid work.
He was also subjected to sex offender notification requirements and a Sexual Harm Prevention Order for 10 years.
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