Director of Public Prosecutions v Saad (a pseudonym)

[2024] VCC 1447

IN THE COUNTY COURT OF VICTORIA

AT MELBOURNE

CRIMINAL DIVISION

(Un) Revised
(Not) Restricted
(Not) Suitable for Publication

Case No. CR-23-01102

DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC PROSECUTIONS

v

ISMAIL SAAD (a pseudonym)

---

JUDGE:	HIS HONOUR JUDGE TIWANA
WHERE HELD:	Melbourne
DATE OF HEARING:	27 June 2024 and 9 September 2024
DATE OF SENTENCE:	17 September 2024
CASE MAY BE CITED AS:	DPP v Saad (a pseudonym)
MEDIUM NEUTRAL CITATION:	[2024] VCC 1447

REASONS FOR SENTENCE
---

Subject:Criminal law - Sentence

Catchwords:              Sexual assault of a child under 16 – Rolled up charge representing three occasions – Plea of guilty – Seven year old victim – Breach of trust – Manipulation and bribery involved – No prior criminal history – Youth and rehabilitation – Delay – Unlawful non-citizen – General deterrence – Specific deterrence – Denunciation – Mandatory registration.

Legislation Cited:      Crimes Act 1958; Sentencing Act 1991; Sex Offenders Registration Act2004.

Cases Cited:R v Mills (1998) 4 VR 235; Azzopardi v The Queen (2011) 35 VR 43;

Tori v The King [2024] VSCA 162; DPP v Tori [2023] VCC 1696; DPP v Caballero (a pseudonym) [2023] VCC 886; DPP v Gordon (a pseudonym) [2022] VCC 456; DPP v Estrella (a pseudonym) [2021] VCC 797; DPP v Anderson (a pseudonym) [2021] VCC 951; DPP v Hill [2023] VSCA 84; DPP v Glover [2022] VCC 1309; DPP v Bader [2022] VCC 443; Moore v The King [2022] VSCA 233.

Sentence:  9 months’ imprisonment followed by an 18 month Community Correction
  Order.

---

APPEARANCES:	Counsel	Solicitors
For the DPP	Mr P. Pickering (Plea) Mr A. Buckland (Sentence)	Office of Public Prosecutions
For the Accused	Mr R. Slattery	Marshall Jovanovska Ralph

HIS HONOUR:

1Ismail Saad[1], you have pleaded guilty on an indictment containing one rolled up charge of sexual assault of a child under the age of 16, contrary to s 49D of the Crimes Act 1958.

[1]        A pseudonym.

2Sexual assault of a child under the age of 16 carries a maximum penalty of 10 years’ imprisonment. This offence also attracts a standard sentence of 4 years’ imprisonment.

Circumstances of the offending

3The circumstances of your offending were read out aloud in court as set out in the summary of prosecution opening dated 12 March 2024.[2]

[2]Exhibit A.

4You were aged 21 at the time of the offending. You are a Malaysian national and were initially in Australia on a bridging visa. Prior to your remand, you worked as a farm hand in the Mildura region. Your bridging visa has expired, and you are currently an unlawful non-citizen.

5The victim, Raya Tengku[3], was 7 years old at the time of the offending. Raya’s family had moved to Australia from Malaysia in 2017.[4]

[3]        A pseudonym.

[4]Some of the family members arrived in Australia in 2016.

6You met Raya’s father in January 2021. At the time, you were both living in Mildura doing farm work. Around September 2021, you became close friends with Raya’s family. You would make arrangements with her mother to visit the family and play with the children.

7Raya, her father, mother and three siblings relocated to Melbourne. On 18 October 2021, they returned to Mildura to pack up the house and collect their belongings. You gave Raya’s mother an iPad to give to Raya for her birthday. You had set the iPad up and it was loaded with money.

8You came to Melbourne on 13 December 2021. You gave an iPhone 13 to Raya’s older sister.

9A few days later, having stayed elsewhere for a few nights, you turned up at the family’s house and asked to stay with them. You stayed with them over the next month or so in Raya’s brothers’ room.

10During this period, you formed a particularly close relationship with Raya and her sister. You would often spend time with the children alone. You would hug Raya and her sister or carry Raya around. You would take Raya and her sister to Coles to buy snacks.

11While staying with the family, you would sometimes use the ‘screen time’ feature on the Apple devices you had given the children to prevent them from accessing the device for a period of time. You had set up the iPad and iPhone such that you had remote access to the devices and could do this from your own device.

12The offending subject of charge 1 represents three separate sexual assaults occurring on three separate occasions.  

Incident 1

13Sometime between 16 December 2021 and 7 January 2022, you took Raya on a bike ride around the suburb in which the family resided. You were riding the bike while Raya stood on BMX pegs behind you. You stopped the bike and told her to get off. You sat on the bike with your legs spread and she sat on your lap. You said you wanted to touch her ‘privacy’ which was a reference to her vagina. She initially refused. You responded by telling her that you would give her money and access to the game Roblox on her iPad.

14Raya then agreed to let you touch her vagina and counted to five out loud to indicate the time. You put your hand inside her underwear and touched her ‘in the middle’ of her vagina. Raya states you used your ‘whole fingers’ and it ‘felt bad’. When talking about this incident, she says it was ‘sometime inside sometime outside’.[5]

[5]To make it clear, no penetration is alleged.

15On the way home, you told Raya not to tell her mother, or the police, or anybody and threatened to ‘screen time’ her if she did.

Incident 2

16On a separate occasion, possibly on the same day as incident one, you called Raya into the room which you shared with her brother. She came in and lay down on the bed with you. She was watching a video. You told Raya’s brother that you wanted to tell Raya a secret and offered him either five or fifty dollars to leave the room. He left leaving you alone with Raya. You then opened her pants and touched her vagina. It is not alleged that this was skin on skin contact.  

Incident 3

17On a third occasion between 16 December 2021 and 7 January 2022, you walked to the supermarket with Raya and her sister. At some point, Raya was alone with you. You gave her a ‘piggyback’ ride. While holding her behind you, you touched her on the buttocks and vagina over her clothes.

Disclosure and confrontation

18On 7 January 2022, Raya disclosed what had occurred to her aunt. She told her aunt that you had touched her ‘privacy’, making a gesture indicating that you had touched her vagina. She also disclosed the offending to her mother.

19You were confronted by her father. When asked if you had touched Raya’s ‘privacy’ you responded ‘yes, I did it but at the bike I just suddenly wanted to touch and I touched like this’ and made a gesture holding up your hand. Raya’s mother asked you ‘tell me if it’s true, did you touch Raya like that on the ‘privacy’? If you silent then I will call the police’. You responded by nodding your head.

20Raya told her mother that she did not scream when touched because she knew you would ‘screen time’ her iPad.

21Raya’s aunt also spoke to you. She said ‘Raya, she is like my daughter. What have you done?’. You said, ‘I admit this, but you know, it’s not my intention of doing so, whether I’m accidentally doing it, or purposely doing it’. You went on to say, ‘on the bike, I wanted to pick her up, maybe I accidentally touched her there’.

22Another sister of Raya’s mother attended the house. She also spoke to you. You told her ‘no I don’t know what is happening to me, something possessed me’ and ‘no, you know how it feels and it feels good and you want it again and again and again’.

23You left the house. On 9 January 2022, during a phone call with a friend, you said that you had ‘touched the victim’s secret part both inside and outside her pants but did not take your fingers into her vagina’.[6]

[6]Further admissions were made during a pre-text call on 9 January 2022. See Exhibit A [34].

24You were arrested on 13 January 2022 and taken to Mildura Police Station. You were interviewed and exercised your right to silence.

Victim impact

25I have taken into account the contents of the five victim impact statements from your victim and her family members.[7]

[7]Exhibit B, C, D, E and F (the statements were not read out).

26Raya states that her whole life has been affected. She felt scared, shocked, confused, traumatised and really mad. She has struggled with sleeping and eating since the offending.

27Raya’s parents and siblings have lost trust in people. Her father is concerned when his children are not in his presence. Her mother struggles to involve herself in family activities and no longer welcomes guests into their home. She has also struggled with sleep. She is easily angered and feels unsafe.  

28Raya’s sister likewise struggles with anger while her older brother has had many negative feelings including sadness, frustration and hatred.

Personal circumstances

29You were born and grew up in a small town in the state of Perak in Malaysia. You are the youngest of seven siblings. Now retired, your father worked as a carpenter and your mother has always been a housewife. Your parents and siblings continue to live in Malaysia.

30You enjoyed a normal childhood involving a good relationship with your parents and siblings. You were raised following the Muslim faith.

31You describe the area you lived in as conservative with limited exposure to Western culture. You received very little or no formal sexual education in school or outside.  

32You completed all your schooling in Malaysia up to the equivalent of year 10 or 11. You describe yourself as a good student and well behaved. Outside of school, you enjoyed playing sports like hockey, futsal and badminton. After leaving school, you played hockey professionally and represented your state for about one month.

33You continued to live in the same town until arriving in Australia at the age of 17. You came here in the hope of earning more money than you could in Malaysia to support yourself and your parents. When you arrived in Australia, your older brother and a cousin were living in Mildura. You commenced work, picking fruit, a matter of days after your arrival. Your brother and cousin returned to Malaysia in 2018.

34Having arrived here you have worked consistently in the fruit picking industry, with only brief periods without work. At the time the initial plea submissions, dated 3 November 2023,[8] were prepared you were working on a casual basis picking avocados and assisting with irrigation and maintenance around a farm. You were earning up to $900 per week and sending several hundred dollars a week home to your parents. Prior to this employment, you worked in an almond factory in Robinvale.

[8]Exhibit 1.

35You have maintained contact with your sister and parents by speaking to them regularly on the phone. They are aware of your offending and remain supportive. Prior to your remand in custody, you were living in Mildura with four friends, all from Malaysia. Your immediate neighbours were also a group of four from Malaysia. You are close to your housemates and neighbours and have confided in them about your offending. You have a nephew who lives in Australia, who is also aware of the offending and remains supportive of you.

36I was not assisted by any psychological material. I was told that you have no diagnosed mental or physical health conditions. You have no issues with drugs or alcohol.

37You have never been in a romantic relationship and remain single.

Objective gravity and sentencing purposes

38The maximum penalty and the standard sentence for the offence of sexual assault of a child under the age of 16 should make it plain that this is an inherently serious offence.

39Any sexual offending against a young and innocent child is serious. The impact of the offending upon the victim and her family has been significant. Such offending is likely to cause ongoing psychological harm to the victim. While I am sentencing you in respect of one charge, the offending you engaged in occurred on three occasions which forms part of the charge and your overall criminality. You offended against a particularly young and vulnerable girl, aged seven years old, for your own sexual gratification. You were much older, an adult aged 21. Your sexual immaturity is no excuse for abusing a young child. The offending involved manipulation and bribery. The first incident involved skin on skin contact when the victim was in your care. Having committed the offending on this occasion, you told the victim not to tell her family or the police and threatened to ‘screen time’ her. That makes it abundantly clear you knew the gravity of what you had done. You offered the young child bribes in the form of money and access to a game, on the iPad you had provided her, so she would agree to the sexual touching.

40I accept the prosecution submission that the second incident in the bedroom, where you offered a bribe to the victim’s brother to get him to leave the room, was pre-meditated.

41The offending occurred against the daughter of a friend who trusted you and welcomed you into his home. You breached both the victim and the family’s trust.

42Such offending must be denounced. Any sentence must send a clear message to anyone who may be minded to offend in a similar manner against a child, that a term of imprisonment would follow. The sentence must also seek to deter you. The offending was not an isolated occurrence and any remorse is limited.

43Considering your youth, I accept that your rehabilitation remains an important factor. That is particularly so in circumstances where you have no prior criminal history and have not re-offended in any way since January 2022.

Prosecution submissions

44Mr Pickering on behalf of the prosecution submitted that such serious offending conduct required the imposition of a term of imprisonment with a non-parole period.

45Mr Pickering acknowledged that your offending did not represent the worst example of such offending. He took no issue with most of the matters in mitigation, including your plea of guilty, comparative youth, lack of priors and any subsequent matters. Mr Pickering noted that, since your arrival in Australia, you have been a contributing member of the community working hard to support yourself as well as sending money back to your family in Malaysia.

46Mr Pickering did take issue with the genuineness of your remorse. He highlighted that there was no material before me in respect of your future risk and prospects of rehabilitation. Mr Pickering submitted that the offending demanded emphasis on denunciation, general deterrence and specific deterrence. He outlined the matters impacting on the gravity of your offending that I have already alluded to.

47He referred me to a single decision of this Court in DPP v Tori [2023] VCC 1696 (‘Tori’). I note that in this case the prosecution accepted that a combination sentence was within range. I regard Tori as a much more serious example of sexual offending. While the offender was 18 years old, his victim was only aged 5. The offender was sentenced in respect of two offences of sexual assault of a child under 16 committed during a single incident. Charge 1 involved placing his hands inside the child’s underpants and ‘tickling’ her genitals and charge 2 involved him licking her vagina. The offender had no prior matters and waited some four years before the finalisation of his case. At the time of sentence, he had turned 23 and demonstrated positive rehabilitation involving no further offending. He pleaded guilty at a relatively early stage which required an enhanced Worboyes discount.[9]

[9]Worboyes v The Queen (2021) 96 MVR 344 (‘Worboyes’).

48At first instance, Tori was sentenced to two years and six months’ imprisonment on charge 1 and four years’ imprisonment on charge 2. A total effective sentence of four years and two months’ imprisonment was imposed with a non-parole period of two years and six months.

49As I noted at the plea hearing, Tori was subject to appeal. The appeal was determined on 16 July 2024,[10] and resulted in a reduced sentence being imposed. On reducing the sentence, significant weight was given to the delay, the offender’s youth and the lost opportunity of a sentence involving detention in a Youth Justice Centre. He was re-sentenced to 15 months’ imprisonment on charge 1, and to two years and four months’ imprisonment on charge 2. With two months cumulation, a total effective sentence of two years and six months with a non-parole period of 18 months was imposed. However, the Court of Appeal stated:[11]

In our opinion, the submission advanced to – but rejected by – the sentencing judge, that a period of custody followed by a CCO was a suitable disposition, should have been adopted by the judge. Such a sentence would have contained an appropriate punitive element, expressed the court’s denunciation, and afforded a measure of both general and specific deterrence, whilst at the same time promoting community protection by fostering the appellant’s rehabilitation. Given the length of time the appellant has now been in custody, however, an option of that kind is no longer realistic. 

[10]Tori v The King [2024] VSCA 162 (Priest and Kaye JJA).

[11]Ibid, at [44].

Defence submissions

50Mr Slattery, on your behalf, relied upon written submissions dated 3 November 2023,[12] which were prepared by Ms Myers who represented you at that time. Further submissions were prepared and filed by Mr Slattery dated 27 June 2024.[13] In addition to these written submissions, Mr Slattery relied upon an undated letter of apology emanating from you.[14] Mr Slattery filed and relied upon further written submissions dated 9 September 2024, regarding the appropriateness of a combination sentence considering your visa status.

[12]Exhibit 1.

[13]Exhibit 2.

[14]Exhibit 3 (written by a friend translating your words).

51The submissions filed by Ms Myers, set out your background which Mr Slattery adopted save for noting that contrary to earlier submissions, you remain a practicing Muslim.[15]

[15]As well as pointing out that incident two did not involve skin on skin contact.

52Mr Slattery having acknowledged the seriousness of the offending, submitted that considering the strong mitigating factors a Community Correction Order (‘CCO’) was in range and an appropriate disposition. In the alternative, if imprisonment was deemed necessary, Mr Slattery submitted a combination sentence would adequately meet all sentencing objectives.

53Mr Slattery referred me to several sentencing decisions which I have read.[16] While every case has its own peculiar facts, as well as matters in aggravation and mitigation, the decisions provide a yardstick and show that a combination sentence can be within range.   

[16]DPP v Caballero (a pseudonym) [2023] VCC 886; DPP v Gordon (a pseudonym) [2022] VCC 456; DPP v Estrella (a pseudonym) [2021] VCC 797; DPP v Anderson (a pseudonym) [2021] VCC 951; DPP v Hill [2023] VSCA 84; DPP v Glover [2022] VCC 1309; DPP v Bader [2022] VCC 443; Moore v The King [2022] VSCA 233.

54In mitigation, Mr Slattery relied upon a number of matters including the following:

·        Your plea of guilty which spared the victim and her family members from giving evidence.

·        Your youthfulness. You were 21 years old at the time of the offending and are now aged 24.

·        Your lack of prior criminal history.

·        The delay in proceedings and the lack of any further offending since this offending occurred between December 2021 and January 2022.

·        A greater emphasis on rehabilitation bearing in mind both your youthfulness and the delay in proceedings.

55You were 21 years old at the time of the offending and have now turned 24. You have no prior criminal history. You have been subject to bail conditions since January 2022 and have been fully compliant with them. Since arriving in Australia you have been working hard in order to earn money not only for your day to day living expenses, but also to support your family in Malaysia. Over the last two and a half years you have not re-offended in any way and have maintained regular employment. You are supported by your family who are aware of your offending. You also have a supportive group of friends in Australia who are from a Malaysian background.

56Although, I do not have the benefit of psychological evidence, I accept that the matters I have just outlined would suggest that you have reasonable prospects of rehabilitation. In circumstances where you have no other criminal history, your youth and your progress during the last two and a half years allows me to give greater emphasis to your rehabilitation.[17] However, that does not mean that the punitive aspects of sentencing are not important; they plainly are.

[17]R v Mills (1998) 4 VR 235; Azzopardi v The Queen (2011) 35 VR 43.

57You pleaded guilty and are entitled to the utilitarian benefit attached to that. By pleading guilty, you have facilitated the course of justice and have taken responsibility for your wrongdoing. You have saved the community the time and expense of a trial. Importantly, your young victim and her family have been spared the distressing experience of having to give evidence.

58While you have pleaded guilty, the question of remorse is a more difficult one. I accept that remorse can arise at different junctures. It can arise immediately after the offending before any police involvement, it can arise following arrest or at some stage during the criminal proceeding before the courts. While you made some admissions to various family members, they were made at a time before any complaint was made to the police. Having been arrested, you did not co-operate with the police. You sought a sentence indication before me on 8 November 2023, however this application was abandoned, and the matter ultimately resolved without an indication. You were arraigned and pleaded guilty on 15 November 2023. The case was adjourned for a plea hearing on 15 March 2024. On that date, your lawyer advised the court that they could no longer act for you and that you were seeking new representation. The court was advised that you may seek to change your plea of guilty. The matter was listed on three occasions in April 2024. Ultimately, on 23 April 2024, your new lawyers advised that you were pursuing a change of plea application. The matter was adjourned for such an application to be heard on 27 June 2024. On 26 June 2024, the court was advised that the change of plea application was no longer being pursued. I heard the plea on 27 June 2024. I was provided with an undated letter of apology.[18] On this date I remanded you in custody and the case was adjourned for a further plea hearing on 9 September 2024.

[18]Exhibit 3.

59I note in your assessment for a CCO, when afforded the opportunity to discuss the offending, you told the author of the Pre-Sentence Assessment report dated 11 July 2024:[19]

okay at the moment I am accepting what is happening there is nothing to discuss here. I am accepting what has happened. I regret what has happened I want this to be about the future and what it will be.

[19]        Exhibit 4, pg.1.

60The author of the Pre-Sentence Assessment report further noted that:[20]

The assessor attempted further discussion in relation to the offending before the court however Mr Saad did not want to discuss the matter future [sic]. It is noted during discussions with Mr Saad it became apparent he preferred to engage in future focused discussions, which may be considered indicative of his unwillingness to participate in discussions, which require him to take accountability for his offending.

[20]        Ibid.

61The history of the matter does not sit well with genuine remorse. Mr Slattery submitted that you are a young man who was scared of the shame you have brought upon your community and family. He further noted that the language barrier has impeded your ability to express yourself, and accordingly, submitted that I should consider your comments to the author of the Pre-Sentence Assessment report with caution.

62Ultimately, I am prepared to accept that your plea of guilty, that has been maintained, along with the letter of apology, suggest a degree of remorse. However, this is plainly not a case of fulsome genuine contrition.

63I accept that the matter has been hanging over your head for over two years. For a young man that is a considerable period throughout which you would have been dealing with anxiety and stress.

64The court was advised via an email sent on 5 September 2024 that you are not on a bridging visa as you believed, but currently remain an unlawful non-citizen.[21] You will be interviewed by the Australian Border Force closer to your release date to ascertain whether you intend to return to Malaysia voluntarily or apply for a bridging visa. It is likely that upon release you will be held in a detention facility until any visa application is processed or you are returned to Malaysia.

[21]        Exhibit G.

65In line with Mr Slattery’s submissions,[22] and not disputed by Mr Pickering, I accept that the prospect of deportation is not a relevant matter for my consideration in determining the appropriate sentence. It is not my task to predict any future executive action that the relevant authority may take.[23] It is my task to sentence taking into account all relevant matters, including the objective gravity of the offending, matters in mitigation, and the sentencing purposes.

[22]Exhibit 5.

[23]See e.g. R v Shrestha (1991) 173 CLR 48; R v Chi Sun Tsui (1985) 1 NSWLR 308; R v Binder (1990) 563 at 567-568; R v Van Hong Pham [2005] NSWCCA 94, at [14]; DPP v Mehrljafarloo [2018] VCC 2144.

66Mr Slattery submitted that you wish to remain in Australia, to continue working here, and thus to continue sending money back home.[24] Accordingly, I will give the risk of deportation some very limited weight in that it will make your time in custody more onerous. However, in circumstances where you did not intend to settle in Australia permanently, and given your current status as an unlawful non-citizen, I do not regard deportation as amounting to additional punishment.

[24]Exhibit 1, at [36].

67This is your first experience in custody and hopefully the fact of custody in and of itself will have a greater deterrent effect upon you. Your limited command of the English language will also make your time in custody more burdensome.

Standard Sentence

68Sentencing requires taking into account a multitude of different matters. The standard sentence of four years is one such factor and no more. The sentence specified as the standard sentence is, ‘the sentence for an offence that, taking into account only the objective factors affecting the relative seriousness of that offence is in the middle of the range of seriousness’.[25] 

[25]        Sentencing Act 1991, s 5A(b).

69The standard sentencing regime does not interfere with the instinctive synthesis approach the court must carry out which involves distilling all relevant factors to arrive at the appropriate sentence.

70I must only have regard to sentences imposed in cases where the standard sentence regime applied. I have had regard to the standard sentencing cases referred to me by the parties. Current sentencing practices are not determinative; they are no more or less important than any of the other factors which the court is required to consider. Each case ultimately turns on its own particular facts and circumstances.        

71The sentence that I impose will be lower than the standard sentence. This is in order to give effect to the mitigating factors which include your youth, lack of priors, plea of guilty, delay and rehabilitation.

Sentencing

72I have highlighted the objective gravity of your offending. I once again re-iterate, there can be no doubt that offending of this nature against a vulnerable and very young child is serious.

73I do not accept that a CCO alone would do justice to the sentencing purposes of general deterrence, specific deterrence, just punishment and denunciation.

74In my judgment, these punitive aspects and maintaining your rehabilitation can be met by a combination sentence.

75Having taken into account all relevant matters and circumstances, Mr Saad, you are sentenced as follows:

76On Charge 1 you will be convicted and sentenced to 9 months’ imprisonment.

77In addition, upon your release you will be subject to a CCO for a period of 18 months.

78Every CCO has core conditions that you must comply with. They are as follows:

·        You must not commit any offence punishable by imprisonment.

·        You must comply with any obligation or requirement prescribed by the regulations.

·        You must report to and receive visits from the Secretary.

·        You must report to the community corrections centre within two clear working days.

·        You must notify the Secretary of any change of address or employment within two clear working days of the change.

·        You must not leave Victoria except with the permission of the Secretary.

79In addition to the mandatory core conditions, the CCO will also include the following special conditions:

·        First, you are required to undertake 100 hours of unpaid community work as directed.

·        Second, you must undergo any mental health assessment and treatment as directed.

·        Third, you must engage in programs that address factors relating to your offending behaviour.

·        Fourth, you will be subject to supervision as directed for the duration of the CCO.

80You must report to South Morang Community Correctional Services within two working days following your release from custody.

81You need to understand that if you were to breach the CCO in any way, either by committing another offence or by not complying with any of the core or special conditions, then you could be charged with the offence of breaching the order.

82The offence of breaching a CCO itself carries a maximum penalty of three months' imprisonment. So were you to breach the order, you would need to come back to court and face sentencing for that breach offence. In those circumstances, you could also be re-sentenced for the offence for which you have been placed on the order. You would then face the very real possibility of being sent back to prison.

83So, there are serious consequences attached to any breach. Do you understand Mr Saad?

84OFFENDER: Yes, your Honour.

85HIS HONOUR: Do you also understand all the conditions of the proposed CCO?

86OFFENDER: Yes, I understand.

87HIS HONOUR: Do you consent to being placed on a CCO in the terms I have outlined and to abide by all of its conditions?

88OFFENDER: Yes, I agree.

89HIS HONOUR:  Thank you. Your verbal consent will be noted on the court record and is sufficient in circumstances such as this where you are appearing by way of a video link.

Pre-sentence detention

90Pursuant to s 18 of the Sentencing Act 1991, the period of 83 days of pre-sentence detention, not including today’s date, is hereby declared as having already been served in respect of this sentence, and I order that such declaration and its details be entered in the court’s records.

Section 6AAA declaration

91Pursuant to s 6AAA of the Sentencing Act, I indicate that had you pleaded not guilty and been convicted, I would have sentenced you to a term of 2 years and 9 months’ imprisonment with a non-parole period of 2 years.

Sex Offender Registration

92Pursuant to the relevant provisions of the Sex Offenders Registration Act 2004, registration is mandatory in relation to this offence and the reporting period is eight years. Upon your release from prison, you must report your personal details to Victoria Police and continue to comply with the reporting obligations. You will be sent an acknowledgement form for signing in due course and will be provided with a document setting out your reporting obligations upon your release and the consequences of any breach. It is an offence punishable by a term of imprisonment to fail, without reasonable excuse, to comply with your reporting obligations.