A SCOTTISH Rugby Union team manager has been found guilty of sending international youth players indecent images and making sexual comments to them.
Steven Dyer sent sexual videos and pictures to schoolboys while they were part of a Scotland youth squad on a training camp a trip in Wales in 2023.
Dyer posted one video showing him urinating and a second clip of him licking his finger in a provocative manner to his Snapchat account that the boys had access to.
One player said the 27-year-old rugby boss had sent him an image of him engaging in sexual intercourse and also made remarks about the size of his penis.
Dyer was arrested and charged by police after a concerned parent of one boy was made aware of the messages and contacted a teacher at the child’s school in Edinburgh.
Dyer was subsequently suspended by the SRU and was sacked from his position with Lloyds Banking Group when bosses at the financial giant were made aware of the allegations.
Dyer, of St Boswalls in the Scottish Borders, denied any wrongdoing claiming the communication was part of “rugby banter” and what he had posted was “nothing of a sexual nature”.
But the team manager was found guilty of three offences of intentional indecent communication between February and October 2023 following a trial at Edinburgh Sheriff Court this week.
Sheriff Daniel Kelly said he found the complainers to be “credible and reliable” while giving their evidence and that Dyer had attempted to “minimise his behaviour” while on the stand.
Sheriff Kelly placed the disgraced rugby manager on the sex offenders register on an interim basis and deferred full sentence for the preparation of reports to March.
The trial heard from three victims who were part of the Scotland youth squad and said Dyer had posted inappropriate content on the group’s Snapchat.
The boys said they received a video of Dyer urinating and a second one of him sitting on a couch licking his finger.
The boys also said the team manager had made sexual remarks to them about his sexual exploits and made comments regarding the size of their penis.
The court heard the communication had left one player “significantly affected by the whole situation” and he had told Dyer to stop sending the material.
A second player said he was left “embarrassed” and considered what had been sent as “inappropriate”.
The court heard Dyer was team manager of the Scotland youth squad and his duties included making the travel and accommodation arrangements for the training camp in Wales.
Dyer told the court he was currently working as a hotel manager and had lost his employment with Lloyds Banking Group as a result of the police investigation into the allegations in February last year.
He said he was part of a Snapchat group set up by one of the players and told the court they sent each other “rude” messages that he believed to be “friendly banter”.
He admitted sending a video of him urinating into a toilet and said the group chat members would regularly call each other names including “fatty”, “wee d***” and “prawn d***”.
He denied there was any sexual motivation into him sending any of the images or to him making the comments to the youth players.
Dyer told the trial he had not received any training or safeguarding advice from the SRU regarding working with under age players.
The Scottish Rugby Union has confirmed Dyer was not a full time employee but was a paid contracted volunteer and has been contacted for comment on the court case.
A Scottish Rugby spokesperson said: “We take the welfare of everyone in our sport very seriously and Scottish Rugby welcomes the verdict delivered at Edinburgh Sheriff Court today.
“Mr Dyer’s actions breached the trust given to him, clearly impacting the young people he was in contact with.
“He was removed from all rugby activities in October 2023, when the first the complaint was made, and his suspension is now permanent.
“Scottish Rugby continues to support those affected by this case.”
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