Latrobe Valley: Andrew Dierickx sentenced to prison for sick child abuse crimes

A Latrobe Valley pervert dad has revealed how he became “addicted” to child abuse material, saying he found it exciting because it was “illicit”. Warning: Graphic.

Stock image

A former cook who became “addicted” to child abuse material will spend at least two years in prison.

Andrew Dierickx, 59, was sentenced for a range of child sexual offences, to which he had earlier pleaded guilty, in the County Court on Thursday.

A warrant was obtained to search the father of three’s address in July 2021 following two reports to the Australian Federal Police.

Police found and seized a number of electronic devices at the Latrobe Valley address, later unearthing video recordings of child sexual abuse as well as explicit photographs of children.

The court heard that in one video Dierickx had instructed an adult woman to “rub” a naked female infant’s genitals while he masturbated and in another he asked a female child to “undress” and show him her genitals, the court heard.

The court was told the charge of soliciting child sexual abuse material related to a Whatsapp conversation he had with a person purporting to be a 14-year-old female from the United Arab Emirates.

He sent her a photo of his genitals after asking her age and if she was a virgin, for which he received a photo of a female child in return.

In another Whatsapp conversation he sent three files containing child abuse material to a person purporting to be in Italy.

He also sent images of genitals, an anus and lewd video of a child during a text exchange with someone purporting to be from Botswana.

Police also found images of clothed and unclothed children on his phone as well as images of children performing lewd acts.

Dierickx – who has worked as a bank teller, customer service officer at Centrelink, bread deliverer and cook – was arrested, interviewed, charged and bailed on July 8, 2021.

He pleaded guilty to a range of charges – including using a carriage service for sexual activity of a child under 16, producing child abuse material, using a carriage service to transmit and solicit child abuse material and possessing child abuse material – at an early stage in the proceedings, the court heard.

Referring to a psychiatric report, Judge Peter Lauritsen said Dierickx had told the writer sex was “important to him” at the time of the offending.

He had claimed he developed a “fantasy world” and his actions felt “exciting because it was illicit”.

The court heard Dierickx, who has no criminal record, had claimed he had stumbled into the offending from a pop-up ad – he found it “sexually exciting” and it later became “an addiction”.

He claimed he only realised the “harmful effect on the children” after police had referred to them as “victims”.

“The possession of child abuse material is not a victimless crime. Children are sexually abused in order to supply the market,” Judge Lauritsen said.

Judge Lauritsen determined that Dierickx’s prospects of rehabilitation were “very good” if he completed programs.

Dierickx was sentenced to four years and eight months in prison with a non-parole period of two years and eight months.