Independent Star Ltd., publishers of the Star Sunday newspaper which was found to have defamed a convicted child porn user, has been fined €40,000 for contempt of court.

The Star Sunday newspaper deliberately repeated false and defamatory statements about a self-confessed and convicted child porn user, a judge said yesterday.

A convicted porn user who had openly admitted his guilt and had sought psychiatric help is still capable of having his “residual” character defamed, a judge decided today.