Paul Ballini faces Emerald District Court for child sexual abuse

WARNING: Graphic. A retired cane farmer has been sentenced for sexually abusing two young girls in Central Queensland. Read the brave words of his victims who faced him in court.

Two girls were abused by a man in Emerald.

A sick child sexual abuser told one of his victims “your husband will thank you one day” while he was abusing her.

On Tuesday, that child and another victim revealed their trauma as they watched from the gallery of Emerald District court as the offender was sentenced.

Paul Ballini, 85, pleaded guilty to eight charges relating to child sexual offences, which the court heard occurred over the course of three years and nine months while both girls were aged under 16.

The charges included two counts of indecent treatment of child under 16 child under 12 years, two counts of indecent treatment of child under 16 (expose) child under 12 years, two counts of indecent treatment of child under 16 (procure to commit) child under 12 years and one count of attempted indecent treatment of child under 16 child under 12 years.

Crown prosecutor Sam Rigby said the offending began in the mid-2000s and reported by the now-adult women in 2021.

Ballini, who was at least 59 years older than the girls at the time the offences occurred, abused the trust their parents had in him by allowing their children to spend time with him in his house and yard without supervision.

In the case of the eldest girl, she was given permission by her parent’s to spend time inside Ballini’s home and yard doing chores.

The court heard that in one incident in the garden of his home, Ballini exposed himself in full view of the girl and performed a sex act in front of her.

He then asked her to turn the hose on and use it on him while he was touching himself.

In a second incident of the same nature, Ballini asked the girl to touch him, before making the girl perform an act.

“The defendant said to her ‘your husband will thank you one day’,”Mr Rigby told the court.

The court heard of anther incident where he and the girl were in Ballini’s yard and he was performing an act until a car approached from the driveway.

On some occasions, Ballini exposed his genitalia to the girl inside his house.

Ballini’s abuse of the second girl mirrored that of the first victim, but seemingly escalated while the pair were inside his home.

The court heard of an incident where he took the girl into the bathroom of his house, stood over the sink and performed an act in full view of the girl.

He then grabbed her hand to briefly make her touch him, then continued to touch himself in front of her after she freed her hand.

On multiple occasions, he asked the girl if he could perform an act on her, but she refused.

“The defendant said to the complaint on occasions ‘don’t tell Mum and Dad’, ” Mr Rigby told the court.

It wasn’t until July 2021 that police attended Ballini’s residence, where he refused to be interviewed by police.

He was later charged and released on bail without serving any time in custody.

Offending ‘affected all aspects’ of women’s lives

Both women wrote victim impact statements that were presented to Judge Jeff Clarke.

The eldest woman wrote she “felt afraid and alone during her schooling years”.

“She thought she would be judged and punished for what happened to her,” Mr Rigby said.

“Her relationships with her family had broken down. She had nightmares from the abuse and struggled to sleep.

“It affects her emotional wellbeing and she can’t trust other people anymore, particularly in terms of the fact that she is now a mother, and her children are seeing other people. And a fear of something happening to them.”

The second victim wrote of similar experiences.

“She became a very angry and frightened young girl, and she also found it difficult to trust people,” Mr Rigby told the court.

“At times she contemplated suicide.

“She’s been unable to escape the affects of the offences on her, she suffers from PTSD, anxiety and depression and she has been hospitalised on two occasions and she’s been medicated and will be medicated for most of her life.

“It has also affected her ability to earn income and relationships.”

Mr Rigby said there was no medical evidence given to the crown to reduce Ballini’s moral culpability.

He acknowledged Ballini had entered a timely plea of guilty, had no criminal history and was otherwise of good character.

Barrister Gregory McGuire, representing Ballini, described his client’s life as “productive and law abiding”.

He told the court Ballini retired from working on sugar cane fields in Innisfail when he was 66 or 67 and later owned and worked the land for crops and beef cattle in Capella.

Ballini retired to Emerald with his wife who he married when he was 22 and they stayed married until her death in 2006.

They have three children, nine grandchildren and 15 great grandchildren. One daughter was present in court.

Mr McGuire also submitted a letter detailing how well the eldest victim was doing academically during the offending period.

“I had a lengthy conference with him yesterday, he got emotional, he said ‘I did wrong, I have to pay for it’ and he said to his daughter who was present ‘I’m just glad your mother wasn’t here’,” Mr McGuire said.

Mr McGuire argued that in the eldest girl’s statement, she said he would never perform a particular act in front of her.

Judge Clarke told Ballini he took advantage of young vulnerable girls.

“You said the most disgraceful thing ‘your husband will thank you one day’,” Judge Clarke said.

“There has been far reaching, devastating, and indeed profounds impacts upon each of these women now, children at the time.

“Hopefully there can be following this proceedings today, some sense of this part of the suffering, having some sense of closure, and an ability to move forward.

“And they should certainly be congratulated for coming forward and complaining.”

Judge Clarke sentenced Ballini to two years and six months, suspended after four months, with an operational period of three years.