Man likely to be deported for horrific assault on niece
A Vanuatu national who had been preying on his intellectually disabled niece for years is likely to be kicked out of the country, a court has heard.
A man who sexually abused his intellectually disabled niece over six years has been jailed, with the court hearing he is almost likely to be deported after serving time behind bars.
The man, who legally cannot be named to protect his victim, was sentenced on September 25 after pleading guilty to two counts of gross indecency on a child and one count of sexual intercourse with a child under 16 years of age.
He also pleaded guilty to one count of sexual intercourse without consent pertaining to the same victim when she was over 16 years of age.
The man’s offending started in January 2017 when he was alone with the girl, who was then aged nine years of age.
The girl was in her home’s family lounge room playing on an Xbox when her uncle entered the room, held her down and sexually assaulted her.
Due to fear, the girl refrained from telling her parents.
Years later when the girl was 15 years-old, the pair were walking together to work and school when the man again sexually assaulted her.
At an unknown date the same year, the girl was asleep in her bedroom when the man woke her up and sexually assaulted her.
The court heard the girl felt “scared and unsafe” at home, particularly when other family members were not around.
She started running away from home and staying over at her friends’ houses.
When the victim was 16 years-old, she was sleeping in her bedroom when she woke up at about 2am to the man standing over her.
It was then that her uncle sexually assaulted her again.
The girl’s mother happened to get up to go to the bathroom when she decided to check on her daughter.
When she opened the bedroom door, she saw the man standing next to the bed leaning slightly towards the girl.
The man tried to hide behind the cupboard, but a shining light betrayed him.
“What are you doing here?” the mum asked.
The man didn’t respond and left the room.
The following day, the girl’s father confronted the man, who claimed he was drunk.
Meanwhile, the girl confided in her mother that she had been sexually abused on several occasions.
The man was ultimately arrested in April 2024.
In court, the impact on the girl was detailed by Justice John Burns.
“She was scared when you came into her room but she did not know how to tell her parents and she did not feel safe on her own,” he said.
“She feels sad because she feels that her father does not believe her.
“She states that she has been seeing a counsellor at school and that talking to the counsellor has helped.”
The court heard the man was originally from Vanuatu but had been working in Australia to provide for his family back on his island home.
“It is unclear to what extent you will be able to undertake appropriate treatment and counselling in custody,” Justice Burns said.
“It is also unclear whether you will remain in this country after your release from prison.
“If, as seems likely, you are deported to Vanuatu, it is unclear to what extent necessary treatment options will be available in that country and the extent to which risk management strategies may be able to be employed.”
The man was handed a sentence of five years and six months imprisonment, commencing on March 13, 2025.
A non-parole period of three years and two months was fixed.
