NSW District Court jails skier Benjamin Wynn for child sex offences

Benjamin Wynn was once “a young man on top of the world”. But behind his sporting success was a dark secret.

Benjamin Wynn, who was sentenced on Wednesday. Picture: Snowy Monaro Regional Council

Benjamin Wynn was once “a young man on top of the world”, admired by many in the NSW Snowy Mountains after representing Australia in skiing at the 2020 Winter Youth Olympics.

But behind his sporting success was a dark secret that would land him in a prison cell.

Wynn, 21, was recently revealed to be a serial child sex offender who had amassed four victims in as many months.

His dramatic fall from grace concluded on Wednesday, when he was sentenced by the NSW District Court to two years in jail.

Judge Peter Whitford SC ordered Wynn to serve a non-parole period of 12 months.

Benjamin Wynn, a child sex offender and skier who competed at the 2020 Winter Youth Olympic Games. Picture: YouTube

He also imposed two community correction orders, one of which will require Wynn to complete 300 hours of community service upon his release from custody.

Wynn had previously pleaded guilty to the aggravated sexual assault of a victim under 16, as well as several counts of sexual intercourse with a child.

The Downing Centre courts in Sydney, where Benjamin Wynn was sentenced. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Nikki Short

In sentencing, Judge Whitford said Wynn had been an 18-year-old schoolboy in the Snowy Mountains at the time of his crimes in 2021.

Three of the victims were 15 at the time, while the other was a few weeks shy of that age.

One of the victims read a statement to the court earlier this month, describing how the process of bringing Wynn to justice had “destroyed” her.

While the other three did not provide victim impact statements, Judge Whitford said on Wednesday he was able to infer that they would also have suffered negative consequences.

Wynn was initially arrested in June 2022, when he was charged with offences relating to three of the victims.

There was then a delay in his case as police investigated a complaint from the fourth and final victim, who was, Judge Whitford said, subjected to a particularly “degrading” sexual assault that involved Wynn using “some force and manipulation”.

The judge described Wynn as “sexually, emotionally and psychologically immature and naive”, saying he was not satisfied the offender had acted with malicious intent.

“[He had] an immature lack of appreciation of the wrongfulness of his conduct,” Judge Whitford said.

Judge Whitford added that Wynn’s experience behind bars on remand, where he has been assaulted and stood over by inmates seeking to extort his father, had been a salutary one.

As a consequence of these incidents, the court heard Wynn was now in protective custody.

Assessing Wynn as “highly unlikely” to reoffend, Judge Whitford said the 21-year-old had demonstrated genuine remorse and reported feeling “shame and disgust” at his offending.

Ultimately, the judge said it was in the community’s best interests for Wynn, who had shown himself to be “intelligent, disciplined and hardworking”, to be rehabilitated.

“He was a young man on top of the world,” Judge Whitford said of Wynn.

It was important the court did not risk “defeating” Wynn’s motivation to successfully reintegrate into society by denying him his freedom for too much longer, Judge Whitford added.

Having been in custody since he pleaded guilty and had his bail revoked late last year, Wynn will become eligible for parole in December.