An Esperance trolley collector has been sentenced to 16 months’ imprisonment for sexually assaulting a young family member.
The 36-year-old man faced Perth District Court for sentencing on August 22 on two counts of indecent dealings with a child under 13.
The offender moved from his mother’s home in Rockingham to Esperance in August 2020 but regularly returned to use the WIFI and help himself to food.
The court heard sometime between September 2019 and December 2020 he was at his mother’s house with two children who were known to him.
The offender was showing one of the children his scorpion collection in a gazebo at the back of the house.
While sitting in the gazebo, the victim, who is 20 years younger than him, was scrolling on a shopping app on their phone.
The offender told them he would buy whatever they wanted.
He then touched the victim inappropriately.
The court was told that the victim froze in shock.
The child’s sibling, who was unaware of the incident unfolding, went to get the victim and the pair went inside.
The court heard the victim kept the sexual assault a secret for a year or two before they told their mother.
The offender initially refused an interview with police but later pleaded guilty.
Despite his pleas, he denied his offending and said he was “angry” and “upset” about being accused of such wrongdoing.
A victim impact statement read in court stated the child found holding onto the secret tough.
The statement said they found it hard to sleep and had troubles with self-esteem and difficulties at school because of the offender’s actions.
District Court Judge Gary Massey said the offender now had a partner and children.
When handing down the sentence, Judge Massey considered the offender’s longstanding and debilitating problems with socialisation and anxiety but said he needed to send a message to the community.
“Children are vulnerable particularly children as young as [name redacted] was at the time and they don’t have the life skills or the ability to stop adults from doing these types of things to them…,” he said.
The judge said the offender had no other criminal record and psychiatric reports stated he had a low risk of reoffending.
He said the offender had not undertaken any rehabilitation. He handed the offender a concurrent sentence and said he would be eligible for parole in eight months.
