Aaron Vincent: Child sex offender sentenced for sick phone calls

A man who called strangers to discuss child sex abuse fantasies says he was being housed alongside a person who abused him before he made the calls.

A convicted child sex offender will remain behind bars for at least another two years after he received convictions for making menacing phone calls about his sick sex fantasies.

Aaron Vincent, 34, pleaded guilty to four counts of using a carriage service to menace, harass or offend when he faced the District Court at Dubbo.

Aaron Vicent was an inmate at Long Bay jail when he made the calls. Picture: John Appleyard

According to court documents, the former Wollongong resident made nine calls to domestic violence and sexual assault counselling service 1800 RESPECT between October 2018 and August 2019 while he was an inmate at Long Bay jail in Sydney.

After giving a fake name, Vincent told the hotline operator he sexually abused a one-and-a-half-year-old girl.

In another call he told of how he carried out “lots of sexual abuse and sexual assaults” on a young girl and sold movies which featured her.

Court documents state Vincent also made calls to the smoking cessation support service Quitline, Family and Community Services and Crime Stoppers.

Vincent told police a desire for sexual gratification was the motivation for his call to Family and Community Services, in which he discussed bathing with a young girl and her sitting on his lap.

“If I give a false name, there’s a good chance that it’s a sexual gratification purpose,” Vincent told police.

He later admitted to police that he hadn’t committed the acts but had fantasises about carrying them out.

Aaron Vincent was moved from Long Bay jail to Wellington jail after he made the calls. He is now an inmate at Lithgow jail.

At a sentencing hearing in April, barrister Joe Kellaway questioned Vincent about his background and the circumstances in which the menacing calls were made.

Vincent, who appeared in court via audiovisual link from Lithgow Correctional Centre, acknowledged he received convictions for similar offences previously and had sex with a 15-year-old girl in 2014 while he was a TAFE student.

“I was too selfish when I made the calls, I was thinking of myself,” Vincent said.

“I sent letters of apology to the services. I really wanted them to know I was sorry.”

Vincent said after he was able to start seeing a psychologist in December 2018, he undertook programs in jail which helped him understand how his behaviour affected the people who received his calls.

“It took me a lot of time to learn about what other people are feeling and what this might be bringing up for them and how it can affect the people around them, their families and work colleagues,” he said.

“I learnt that this behaviour became like a comfort zone for me. It partly became a way of blocking out any other dramas or the depression that was going on in my life.”

Aaron Vincent will remain behind bars for another two year.

Vincent, who was raised in Rockhampton and Wollongong, told the court he was abused, witnessed family violence and was kicked out of home as a teenager.

“While I was at Long Bay at the end of 2018, I was actually placed in the same area as one of the people that offended against me,” Vincent said.

“That’s when I started reaching out for help … my behaviour went downhill at that point pretty quickly.”

“I’m on medication … I’ve done all the treatment available. It’s just up to me to continue the better behaviour that I’ve been displaying.”

Aaron Vincent was sentenced in the District Court at Dubbo Picture: Jedd Manning

The court heard Vincent had been taking a medication called Risperidone which lowered his libido and reduced his risk of reoffending.

“I’ve offended so many times it’d be stupid to say there’s no risk,” Vincent said.

“I find myself sitting in my cell sometimes and I instantly remember one of the things I’ve said and I shake my head. I sit here and cringe, I feel dirty, I feel like having a shower.

“I feel like I’ve constantly got this shame, this disgusting thing all over me.”

Vincent said he was estranged from his family and was determined to get his life back on track once released from custody.

“Even i’m exhausted with the life I’ve chosen, I can’t do it anymore,” Vincent said.

“There’s a lot of things I need to work on.

“I need to have something out there that means something to me.”

After making a finding of special circumstances and issuing a 25 per cent sentencing discount for an early guilty plea, Judge Nanette Williams convicted Vincent and handed him a three year and seven months prison sentence.

Vincent will be eligible for parole in January 2023.