Mark Rusling fronts court over hundreds of child abuse material

A Melbourne man who groomed a 10-year-old girl into sending him nudes kept two mobile phones filled with child abuse material hidden in his young daughter’s bedroom.

Mark Rusling pretended to be 25 to 30 years younger than his age during his sexually explicit and persistent communication with two girls on Snapchat.

A Melbourne man who groomed a 10-year-old girl into sending him nude photos kept two mobile phones filled with child abuse material in his three-year-old daughter’s bedroom.

Mark Rusling, 43, fronted the County Court in Melbourne for sentencing on Tuesday after pleading guilty to charges of receiving, transmitting and soliciting child abuse material, using a carriage service to procure persons under 16 for sex, and possessing or controlling child abuse material.

Despite being a first-time offender, Judge Sarah Leighfield said the offence was serious and imposed a sentence of two years’ and 10 months’ jail

However, she ordered that Rusling be released on a reconnaissance order after serving nine months given the steps he has taken towards rehabilitation.

Judge Leighfield said police found 537 child abuse images on two mobile phones concealed under a pillow in his daughter’s bedroom, and on a USB, in January 2023.

Rusling’s offending, between August and December 2023, involved him sending and receiving child abuse material with people he communicated with on the encrypted instant messaging service Telegram.

Mark Rusling chatted with two girls under the age of 16 on Snapchat and encouraged them to send photos of themselves.

The material also involved videos of children under the age of 16 engaged in various sexual activity, including an image of a baby girl with an exposed genitalia.

Judge Leighfield said Rusling started communicating with Alex, a 15-year-old girl from Victoria, on Snapchat in September 2022 and held himself out to be a 17-year-old boy who was meant to be at school.

“You complimented her and encouraged her to send him further photos which she did, and had explicit conversation with her about masturbation,” Judge Leighfield said.

“You also encouraged her to be involved in a video call whereby she would watch you masturbating. The conversation ended when she stopped responding to your messages.”

Rusling also communicated on Snapchat with a girl who identified herself as a 13-year-old from Sydney who police discovered was a 10-year-old.

“You began the conversation by claiming to have accidentally added the user on Snapchat,’’ the Judge said.

“You told her you were 16 and inquired whether she had a boyfriend or girlfriend.

“You encouraged her to send photos of her to you, including photos of her trying to be naughty and of her lifting her shorts and giving him a peek. His persistence led her to send five images of her genital region.”

She said Rusling’s chat on Snapchat was sexually explicit and persistent which was inherently serious offending.

“You pretended to be some 25 to 30 years younger than you actually are in order to encourage both victims to communicate with you.”

Judge Leighfield said real children were harmed in the production of child abuse material and that the repeated circulation and viewing continued their victimization.