Paedophile worked with children in Ukraine

Lee Callaghan was dismissed by the charity in 2024

A convicted paedophile has been found to be working for a charity supporting vulnerable children in Ukraine.

Lee Callaghan, 45, from Newport, admitted making and distributing indecent images of children as young as 12 and was given a two-year prison sentence in 2017.

British charity Siobhan's Trust distributed pizzas to families displaced by Russia's invasion in Ukraine and hired Callaghan, who called himself Jack Morgan, with few, if any, background checks, the Telegraph newspaper reported.

The charity, which has been renamed HopeFull, said it had been unaware of the allegations against him when he was dismissed in February 2024.

Callaghan made regular visits to orphanages, schools and camps on behalf of the charity in west Ukraine from early 2023, the Telegraph said.

The publication also quoted an American former volunteer who joined the charity in February 2023 as saying there were "serious failings" in the charity's vetting process, describing it as "extremely lax".

The Telegraph said she claimed there were no background checks when she was recruited following a brief exchange conducted over WhatsApp.

Callaghan was arrested by National Crime Agency (NCA) officers in 2016, acting on information that he had made contact with a known paedophile online and wanted to arrange to meet and sexually abuse a child.

A number of indecent images, at least one of which he had shared, were found on a phone and laptop seized from his home.

"In his communications with others it became clear Callaghan was a dangerous man who wanted to abuse children, so his arrest and conviction has protected potential victims," Martin Ludlow from the NCA said after Callaghan's conviction in 2017.

HopeFull said it was "committed to the safety of its volunteers, employees, and the communities it serves".

It added: "As part of the charity's safety processes, no volunteer is left unsupervised with vulnerable children or adults and we always operate in teams of at least four people.

"This individual gained his position under an assumed identity and was then dismissed by the charity in February 2024, at which point the charity was unaware of the allegations against him."