A Warrawong man who was caught in the middle of an online chat soliciting rape videos has pleaded guilty to possessing abusive material involving children and animals, hidden among a large digital cache.
Court appearance
Matthew Milstead did not appear via audio-visual link from custody in Wollongong District Court on May 8 when his matter was scheduled for a sentence hearing. The 53-year-old had previously pleaded guilty on April 22 in the Local Court to charges of possessing child abuse material and bestiality material.
Details of the case
According to court documents, after receiving a tip-off about Milstead possessing criminal material, police executed a search warrant at his Warrawong home on August 4, 2025. Inside his bedroom, officers found an open and unlocked laptop displaying a conversation on the messaging platform KIK.
As police reviewed the conversation, Milstead yelled out, "I like trolling paedos." He then explained to officers that he would "blackmail the c---s" and obtain Bitcoin. In a message to another person, Milstead asked if they had any "mother daughter or rape" videos, pressing for links and stating he had "been burnt doing this before."
Police seized ten mobile phones, seven laptops, two Samsung tablets, a camera, and a hard drive from the property. The devices were taken to Lake Illawarra Police Station for forensic examination.
Forensic findings
During a review of an extraction report, police discovered a large amount of data, including more than 100,000 images and 5,653 videos. Among a number of randomly selected and reviewed videos, at least 739 were classified as category one and two child abuse material. These videos depicted female and male children being abused by adults.
Additionally, police found 12 bestiality videos on Milstead's devices, showing adult men and women engaging in sexual acts with dogs and horses.
Arrest and next steps
Milstead was arrested at his home on August 13. A solicitor for the Director of Public Prosecutions, Jacqueline Azad, informed the court that Milstead's sentence hearing is expected to take three hours. While Milstead has not applied for bail, he is expected to seek release ahead of his October sentence date. Unless granted bail, he will appear before the District Court in person or via audio-visual link.
