Justin Andrews: Bronte child sex offender fails to report to police
A former Cranbrook schoolboy who once groomed a child via an online game before abusing him has found himself back in court. The 34-year-old is on the Child Protection Register for life.
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A former Cranbrook schoolboy who is on the Child Protection Register for life after convictions for child porn and grooming a boy via an online game before abusing him has landed back in court for failing to report to police.
Justin Robert Andrews, 34, was convicted in NSW for possessing child abuse material in June 2018 and jailed for a year, court documents state.
He was also convicted in Victoria in December 2019 for committing an indecent act with a child aged under 16 for which he was placed on a Community Correction Order according to his court file.
Both sets of charges stemmed from an Australian Federal Police raid on Andrews’ home in December 2014 which uncovered the child abuse images of the boy he had groomed and later visited in Melbourne and abused, the County Court of Victoria heard last year.
Upon becoming eligible for parole and moving back in with his mother in Bronte last June, he was informed he must report annually to police during the month of June, court documents state.
When he failed to do so this year, the police turned up on his doorstep on 11am on July 1.
“Does this relate to the NSW matter or the Melbourne matter,” asked Magistrate Jacqueline Trad.
The prosecution confirmed it was the NSW matter.
The police fact sheet states Andrews said “I didn’t realise” when questioned by officers but agreed he did read and sign documents informing him of the obligation at Bondi Police Station.
Andrews represented himself when he appeared before Waverley Local Court on Wednesday.
He pleaded guilty to one charge of failing to comply with reporting obligations under the Child Protection Offenders Registration Act and said not reporting to the police station for the annual obligation was a mistake.
The accused pointed out he has always complied with his other weekly reporting obligations with his bail report confirming he had indeed dutifully turned up to the station every Monday.
“I hadn’t had a problem whatsoever,” Andrews said.
“It was just an oversight on my part.”
Magistrate Trad said she accepted the explanation and recorded a conviction with no further penalty.
“I will take it into account it was an oversight,” she said.
“These are very serious obligations you must comply with.
“But next time, if there is a next time, you could receive a custodial sentence.”
Andrews’ court documents state he is both unemployed and not studying.
Part of his reporting conditions involve agreeing to “undergo treatment by a specialised psychologist for paraphilia”.
Paraphilia is a condition where someone has abnormal sexual desires including towards children.