ELTHAM, VIC. — Richard Irving, Chief Executive of the Eltham Wildcats Basketball Club – one of the largest associations in Australia – was jailed after he was caught ‘red-handed’ in an undercover police sting.
In an online statement, Eltham Wildcats President Peter Meehan states that: “Working in a complex legal environment, Eltham Wildcats Basketball Club and Basketball Victoria acted swiftly to ascertain information regarding the matter and proactively sought clarification. The circumstances were only able to be confirmed on June 10, 2026, the day after Mr Irving ‘had resigned for personal reasons’.”
Irving was forced to step down from the club after a jury, on June 3, found him guilty of ‘using a carriage service to groom a child under 16.’
On Friday, July 17, Irving fronted the County Court, where shocking details of the messages he sent to ‘Lily’ were revealed. Irving thought he was talking to a eenage girl. He was talking to a police officer pretending to be a teenage girl.
“Is it bad girls your age turn me on?”
The undercover officer pretended to be a 14-year-old girl who was having a day off from school and was “a bit bored.”
Using the Chatiw platform, Irving admitted he was 51-years-old and asked the teenage girl if she “was into older guys?”
Irving then went on his messages to state that he was a “naughty guy” and that he met girls her age and “played with their p__ies” before.
The conversations soon moved to Google Chat where irving made no attempt to hide his identity.
“Yes, baby, Richard here.”
“Pretty please send me a pic of yourself.”
The undercover officer then sent an AI-generated image of a teenage girl, to which Irving replied: “OMG. You are beautiful. It’s bad, my c__k twitched.”
Irving pleaded not guilty and attempted to convince the jury he believed that the woman he was speaking to was an older woman engaged in ‘role playing.’ The jury did not believe it.
County Court Judge Daniel Holding said that the offending was “serious and carried a maximum penalty of 15 years’ jail.”
Judge Holding put the offending at the lower end of the scale and sentenced Irving to 10 months, but ordered that he be released on recognisance order after serving only two months.
“During the recruitment process for the former Chief Executive Officer, the Club conducted all appropriate probity checks, including a National Police Check and a Working With Children Check,” Peter Meehan said.
The Eltham Wildcats work in partnership with a local provider, Elysium Psychology.
Contact Elysium at https://www.elysiumpsychology.com.au/
Phone: (03) 9069 2103
Email: admin@elysiumpsychology.com.au
Address: Suite 7, 18 Sherbourne Rd, Greensborough, 3088
