Former chef Graeme Walter avoids jail ‘by a slither’ after sexually assaulting teenager
A head chef at a restaurant took a teenager home and made a frank admission after he sexually assaulted her on a bathroom floor.
A chef at a Mornington Peninsula restaurant drove an intoxicated teen home and told her “I should not have done that” after he sexually assaulted her in a bathroom.
Graeme John Walter avoided jail after he pleaded guilty to two counts of sexual penetration of a 16 or 17-year-old in relation to the incident in June 2019.
“You missed going to jail by a slither in this case,” Judge Kevin Doyle told the disgraced chef.
The 34-year-old was instead sentenced to a two-year community corrections order in the County Court on Thursday.
The 16-year-old girl was intoxicated when Walter tried to kiss her before the incident, but she pushed him away.
The teenager walked into a bathroom and he followed her, sexually penetrating her twice, once without wearing a condom.
She was left lying naked on the bathroom floor and vomited after the assault.
But the chef then drove the girl home and told her during the car trip “I should not have done that” because of his wife and family.
He also asked her to hide his jumper, which was covered in blood and vomit.
The teen was left depressed after the assault, wasn’t able to sleep and suffered from nightmares.
The victim eventually spoke to her brother but only said she “didn’t want to ruin someone else’s life”.
When Walter was arrested he told police he “panicked, freaked out a bit” after the assault but told officers he was unable to get an erection during the assault.
The now disgraced chef was working long hours at the Two Buoys tapas and wine bar at Dromana and was stressed because the restaurant’s management was selling the business.
The offending was spontaneous and Walter felt “guilty, sad and terrible” after the incident and would not be able to continue working as a chef, the court was told.
As part of his community corrections order Walter must undergo drug and alcohol treatment, submit to drug tests, do mental health treatment and programs and 180 hours of community service.