SA pedophile Geoffrey William Moyle a 'child sex terrorist' whose sentence must be increased, court hears

The infamous SA pedophile known as Waka is a "child sex terrorist" whose jail sentence must, a court has heard, be increased – or else other perverts will receive leniency.

The SA man who helped start the global online child exploitation market is a "child sex terrorist" whose "inadequate" sentence will undermine punishments across the country, a court has heard.

On Wednesday, federal prosecutors asked the Court of Appeal to greatly increase Geoffrey William Moyle's penalty for abusing child sex slaves in overseas brothels.

 

Lincoln Crowley QC, for the Commonwealth, said Moyle's eligibility for parole in 2024, despite the gravity of his offending, meant his sentence was "manifestly inadequate".

 

"Over the years, the maximum penalty (for these offences) has been increased from 17 years to 25 years," he said.

 

He said Moyle's offending was too severe to be considered "sex tourism" and cited a past case where such crimes were described as "child sex terrorism".

 

"That's a very precise summary of this type of offending," he said.

 

Moyle, 47, of Westbourne Park, was known online as "Waka" and praised, by perverts, as the man who "wrote the Bible in child abuse".

 

He was among the first criminals to post videos and photos of his crimes online for others to view, making him the target of a 20-year international manhunt.

 

He was finally apprehended by SA's Joint Anti Child Exploitation Team, which matched his clothes and physical characteristics to scenes in his videos.

 

Prosecutors asked District Court Judge Paul Cuthbertson to jail Moyle for in excess of 14 years but he declined, saying Australian appeal courts had set a 10-year standard for such offending.

 

On Wednesday, Mr Crowley said Judge Cuthbertson had been mistaken.

 

"His Honour erred by considering himself to be bound, in effect, by a range of sentences imposed in previous cases," he said.

 

"(This appeal) is necessary to achieve consistency in principle by sentencing courts," he said.

 

"(It must) maintain an adequate standard of punishment and correct both this specific error and the consequences of this specific error."

 

Kris Handshin QC, for Moyle, said his client's existing sentence should stand.

 

He said it properly took into account Moyle's "compelling personal circumstances" and his efforts to rehabilitate, and seek psychological help, since the offending.

 

Moyle's crimes, he said, had been committed years ago and his client had "voluntarily" stopped offending long before his arrest.

 

The hearing, before Chief Justice Chris Kourakis and Justices David Lovell and Sam Doyle, continues.

 

Geoffrey William Moyle admitted sexually abusing children in Cambodia over three years and publishing child exploitation material online.

EARLIER REPORT: CHILD SEX MONSTER MUST BE RESENTENCED, COURT TOLD 

In October, Federal prosecutors renewed their push to have Geoffrey William Moyle, aka “Waka”, imprisoned for more than 14 years by filing appeal papers.

They want the Court of Appeal to replace his nine-year sentence, which leaves him eligible for parole in 2024, with one of the harshest penalties ever imposed in Australia.

The bid is expected to face staunch opposition in court as it goes against existing national legal precedent.

Courts around the country have, over the previous decade, repeatedly ruled a 10-year head sentence is appropriate for the abuse of children overseas.

A foreign aid worker, Moyle, 47, of Westbourne Park, filmed himself abusing child sex slaves in overseas brothels.

He was among the first criminals to share such material online – under his alias “Waka” – with other perverts, who called him the man who “wrote the Bible on child abuse”.

“Waka” was the target of a 20-year international manhunt that ended in 2019, when Moyle was unmasked and arrested by SA’s Joint Anti Child Exploitation Team.

Detectives matched a watch, a pair of shoes and a growth on “Waka’s” thigh to Moyle’s possessions and physical characteristics.

Moyle wearing the same watch he sported while offending as "Waka", the originator of online child exploitation. Picture: AFP.

Moyle’s 2019 arrest ended a 20-year international manhunt for “Waka”. Picture: 10 News First.

After paying one of his victims $84,000 compensation, Moyle was jailed for more than nine years, with a 4 ½-year non-parole period backdated to his arrest.

In sentencing, District Court Judge Paul Cuthberston said prosecutors had called for Waka to be jailed for 14 years, but noted such sentences had been overturned on appeal interstate.

“It seems to me that there is a good argument that the penalties as set down in the respective courts of appeal may be too low,” he said.

”As a judge of the District Court, I don’t think it is appropriate for me to change a sentencing regime that has been imposed by three different courts of appeal throughout Australia.”