IT worker Antony Bonaccorso spared jail time for blackmailing teens with ‘f--k me Daddy’ pics
Antony Bonaccorso pleaded guilty to a host of internet-related harassment and child pornography charges, admitting he tried to blackmail three underage teens into giving him nude pictures.
Police & Courts
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A UTS science graduate turned IT worker who spent four months behind bars on child sextortion charges has been spared further jail time on sentence, after a judge found sending him back to prison would interfere with his rehabilitation.
Antony Bonaccorso, 25, pleaded guilty to host of internet-related harassment and child pornography charges, admitting he tried to blackmail underage girls into sending him nude photos online.
Documents tendered to Parramatta District Court on Friday said Bonaccorso would contact the teens on Snapchat and request compromising photos of them, which he would then manipulate with the phrase “f—k me Daddy”, and threaten to send the images to the teens’ friends, families and school principals if they didn’t provide further naked photos.
In one case, he told a 15-year-old girl he would put intimate photographs she’d sent him on a USB and send it to her mother’s house if she didn’t give him more pictures.
The court heard during the same period Bonaccorso also sexually groomed what he thought was a 14-year-old girl online, but turned out to be an undercover police officer carrying out a targeted sting.
During the conversation with the officer, Bonaccorso often referring to himself as “Daddy” and allegedly discussed masturbation, asked for fellatio and sent pictures of his erect penis with the words “do you like Daddy’s c—k?”.
Detectives attached to State Crime Command’s child exploitation unit raided Bonaccorso’s home on May 2 last year, seizing multiple electronic devices including a mobile phone containing more than 300 images and videos of child abuse material collected by Bonaccorso over a two month period in early 2023.
The files depicted female and male prepubescent children engaged in sex acts with themselves and other children and adults, court documents said.
Bonaccorso, who is engaged to be married, was charged with 10 offences upon his arrest, but eventually struck a plea deal with prosecutors that saw him plead guilty to six charges - three counts of using a carriage service to offend, and one count each of using a carriage service to access child abuse material; using a carriage service to cause child’s abuse material to be transmitted; and using a carriage service to groom person under 16 years for sexual activity.
He spent four months behind bars on remand before being granted Supreme Court bail in September last year to live with his parents at their home in Kenthurst.
In a letter of apology handed to Judge Stephen Hanley, Bonaccorso said he felt ashamed of what he’d done.
“I’m ashamed of my blindness at the time to the harm and danger that I caused the victims, in particular when I read the statement of [one of the teens],” he said.
“I felt disgusted with myself for allowing a young, vulnerable person to be exposed to the predatory and dangerous interactions that were exchanged online.”
Three psychological reports tendered to the court during Bonaccorso’s sentencing hearing revealed he suffered from a range of mental health conditions stemming from trauma experienced during his teenage years, but that he was now getting professional help.
In one report, the psychologist said Bonaccorso had made excellent progress in his sessions, with more planned for the future.
He said any return of Bonaccorso to prison would be detrimental to his progress, noting such treatment he required was not available in a custodial environment.
Judge Stephen Hanley accepted the psychologist’s opinion and agreed to spare Bonaccorso further jail time, instead finding him $1,000 and releasing him on a recognisance bond totalling almost three years.
“I’m satisfied his response [to therapy] has been highly exceptional and initiated by a desire to address the underlying issues in relation to his offending,” Judge Hanley said, noting Bonaccorso had strong family support.
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