Melbourne photographer Cadman Rossignoli pleads guilty to sexual penetration of a child under 16
A Melbourne photographer who lost his business after his child sex charges were exposed has admitted violating a young girl.
South East
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A Melbourne photographer bombarded a child with lewd messages before sexually violating his victim while not wearing a condom.
Cadman Rossignoli, 29, was sentenced in the County Court on Monday to a 24-month community correction order after pleading guilty to sexual penetration of a child under 16.
Rossignoli, who also pleaded guilty to procuring a minor for child pornography, violated the child on multiple occasions between 2012 and 2013.
Much of Rossignoli’s depraved offending occurred in Melbourne’s southeast and the Mornington Peninsula.
Rossignoli, who also pleaded guilty to indecent act with a child under 16 and use a carriage service to procure a child under 16 for a sexual act, sent sordid “electronic messages” to his victim.
The fiend asked the child “whether she shaved downstairs” and asked her if she would have sex with him.
Rossignoli asked the victim if she was a virgin and later violated the child while not wearing a condom.
The victim later recalled she “felt pain”.
Rossignoli, who sent the child a photo of his penis, also made “persistent requests” for his victim to send him nude images.
The victim sent some images but she refused further requests for lewd material.
Rossignoli, who has no prior convictions, was arrested and interviewed by police in 2020 but he wasn’t charged until April last year.
“(I) did not know what the age of consent was and (I) did not think (I) had to know,” Rossignoli told police.
The court heard Rossignoli lost his job and his photography business collapsed after the Herald Sun exposed his child sex offence charges in June last year.
Rossignoli, of Frankston, hopes to “resurrect” his photography business, the court was told.
A psychologist opined Rossignoli was a “low risk of sexual offending”.
Multiple people including Rossignoli’s partner and several former girlfriends submitted references on his behalf.
Judge Peter Lauritsen said he “assumes” Rossignoli’s offending “harmed” the victim at the time and “still does”.
The defence made a hail Mary bid to have Rossignoli’s name withheld from court documents, citing he came “from a small coastal community”.
“I presume in the newspaper article that you made reference to his name was given …,” Judge Lauritsen said.
“When you say a ‘seaside place’ you’re really talking about Frankston aren’t you,” Judge Lauritsen said.
“Yes, your honour …,” the defence responded.
“A lot of people live out that way,” Judge Lauritsen said.
The prosecution submitted it was satisfied for court documents to be released with Rossignoli’s name.
“I understand there was a forum online or Facebook page … (hosted by) a number of women (who) suggested they had encounters with the accused …,” the prosecution submitted.
“In my submission, given there are a number of people who have made such allegations online, I’m not sure that the release of the opening and the indictment (with Rossignoli’s name) would identify the complainant …”
Rossignoli was convicted and ordered to perform 200 hours of unpaid community work.
An application to make Rossignoli a registered sex offender will be heard at a later date.
