Former Dubai teacher sentenced to jail in the US for child sex offences

A US citizen who used to teach at a school in Dubai has been sentenced to jail after he was charged with child sex offences in a court in Florida.

William Brinson Ball, 40, has been handed a jail term of 21 years in federal prison for attempting to entice a minor for sex and transporting child pornography, according to US media reports.

The court in Tampa also ordered him to forfeit his iPhone and $5,000, which were used to commit the offences.

Ball faced trial earlier this year and pleaded guilty to the charges in April.

The accused, who taught music at the Swiss International Scientific School in Dubai, reportedly paid $5,000 to an undercover agent, who was posing as the father of a seven-year-old in the US.

He also sent child-pornographic videos to the agent, and flew to the US in February to meet the child.

After his arrival in Orlando, Ball was arrested and a forensic analysis of his phone revealed that he possessed over 500 child-pornographic images and videos, a report said.

A spokesman for the school in Dubai told Arab News in February that Ball had been recruited through a “reputable [recruitment] agency” and that “stringent background checks” had been carried out.

He “was suspended with immediate effect following his arrest and shortly thereafter his employment was formally terminated,” the spokesman added.

The school also said that there was ‘no reason to believe Ball had committed similar offences’ while working there.

Ball also used to teach in schools in Qatar and Japan.