Mother and ex-partner in court for child exploitation

A mother filmed herself performing sex acts on her children as they slept and then sent the ‘vile and exploitative’ videos to her boyfriend. Both have fronted court.

The court heard horrifying details of the abuse the mother inflicted against her children while they slept (AAP Image/Glenn Hunt)

A Maryborough mother and her ex-partner have faced court together charged over the production and viewing of explicit images of the woman performing sex acts on her own children.

The mother, aged in her 30s, who cannot be named for legal reasons, pleaded guilty in the Maryborough District Court on Monday to eight counts, including making and distributing child exploitation material.

The man, aged in his 30s, who also cannot be named, pleaded guilty to two counts of possessing child exploitation material.

The court proceedings were interrupted when the mother refused to sit in the dock alongside her co-accused, causing a delay in proceedings. She wept openly throughout the sentencing and her co-accused held his head in his hand while shaking uncontrollably.

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Crown Prosecutor Christopher Cook told the court the pair had been in an “open relationship” for four years and it progressed sexually to the point where the male expressed his “sexual interest in children” to the woman.

He had previously sourced material from a prior relationship, the court heard.

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Police attended the man’s property and confiscated his phone on July 12, 2022, after being tipped off that the abuse was taking place. The mother then “reset” her phone, which resulted in the material being wiped after hearing of this, the court heard.

The sentencing of a mother who performed and recorded sex acts against her own child was held at Maryborough District Court on Monday morning.

Mr Cook told the court the mother was not forced to distribute the “vile and exploitative” material and she admitted in an interview with police her ex-partner did not “put a gun to my head” to coerce her into sending it.

The children had since been removed from the care of the mother and she had no contact with any of them, except phone calls with the two eldest.

Her lawyer, William Prizeman, told the court his client has had “ruined her life” and had “underlying mental health issues” that contributed to her behavior.

He said while the mother had impacted the children’s future by depriving them of her care, the abuse did not affect them “as they were asleep” when it occurred.

Judge Michael Byrnes sentenced the woman to three and a half years in prison with a parole eligibility date of July 2024. The man was sentenced to nine months jail, to be suspended after two months.

The pair were placed on the Queensland sex offender registry for five years and convictions were recorded.