Dylan Pedler sexually abused 16-year-old girl after picking her up from the side of the road

A child said she stills remembers the desperate feeling of wanting to wake up from the “horrible nightmare” of a predator’s sexual assault. Read her powerful words.

A child who was plied with alcohol and sexually assaulted by a vile predator told the court she carries the pain of that night with her every day.

Dylan Wayne Pedler, 30, forever changed the lives of the victim and her family after he committed the degrading abuse.

Victim impact statements were read to the District Court on Tuesday.

The victim said she has a constant sick feeling now knowing “monsters” like Pedler are real.

“Because of what you’ve done to me I will forever carry that trauma with me both physically and emotionally,” she said.

Dylan Pedler was found guilty after trial of unlawful sexual intercourse with a child. Photo: Facebook

Dylan Pedler will be sentenced in June for serious criminal trespass and assault. Photo: Facebook

“I will never forget the feeling of what you were doing to me and the feeling of being powerless – the desperate feeling of wanting to wake up and it had been a horrible nightmare.”

The victim said Pedler took away her innocence and destroyed her sense of self worth, confidence and ability to trust anyone.”

“I carry the pain of that night with me every second of every day,” she said.

“The constant feeling I have of wanting to rip my own skin off because I can’t bear the thought that a grown man touched me in a way that is meant to represent love and care but he turned it into a vile and disgusting act.

“You forced me to grow up overnight and took away the chance I had to live a happy, fun and exciting teenage life and that is something I’ll never get back.”

The victim’s mother said the crime had changed her family’s life forever.

“There have been times in my life where I have felt pain but nothing compares to the pain I feel knowing I have not protected my daughter,” she said.

“That little girl is gone and I grieve her everyday.”

During Pedler’s trial, the court heard Pedler used the fake name “Daniel” when he picked up the victim on the side of the road.

“He picked her up with the sole intention of grooming her by gaining her trust with alcohol,” Mollie McKendrick, for the prosecution, said.

The court heard Pedler’s victim repeatedly told him she was 16 and had a boyfriend in an effort to stop his sexual advances.

Mr Pedler followed the 16-year-old into a shed behind the house.

“It was in the shed where he grabbed her by the hips and started touching her,” Ms McKendrick said.

“He then turned her around and bent her over a white object.”

Pedler was found guilty by a jury in the Port Augusta District Court in December of three charges of unlawful sexual intercourse.

Craig Caldicott, for Pedler, argued during the trial that his client believed the victim was over the age of 17.

“Maybe we wouldn’t be here if Mr Pedler had sent them some flowers,” he said.

Judge Michael Durrant will sentence Pedler next week.