Whitsunday man handed suspended jail term over illegal romance with teen

He lavished her with gifts, told her he loved and wanted to marry her and was even paying off a ring. But she was an underage teen and he was twice her age. Now he’s a convicted child sex offender.

Mackay Court House

An intellectually impaired Whitsunday man’s “love” affair with a girl nearly half his age ended in him being charged and convicted as a sex offender.

This is despite the girl’s mother knowing about the illegal romance and “turning a blind eye”.

And while Mackay District Court heard the 29-year-old man was in “love” with and wanted to marry the teen who “wore the pants” in the relationship and enjoyed the gifts he lavished on her, she was only 15 and under the age of consent.

The pair met through a mutual friend in the Airlie Beach region and went nightclubbing together, so initially he had believed her to be 18 because “she had a Tinder profile and … looked over than 15 and had tattoos”.

But Crown Prosecutor Monique Sheppard said he found out “within a few weeks” of them meeting, she was only 15 and kept having sex with her anyway.

She told police they had sex at least 50 times during the illegal relationship and he told her he wanted to marry her, move to Brisbane with her and start a family together. He even referred to her as his fiancee.

The pair met through a mutual friend in the Airlie Beach region and went nightclubbing together, so initially he had believed her to be 18.

He bought her a car, alcohol, food, clothing and jewellery including paying off a “promise ring”.

Ms Sheppard said while the teen knew of the ring and wanted it, she did not want to marry the man.

“She wanted essentially the gifts he was giving her,” Ms Sheppard said.

The court heard he slept over her home multiple times and her mother even walked in on the two topless in bed.

“It seems that the (teen’s) mother turned a blind eye to the relationship,” Judge Gregory Lynham said.

He also supplied her MDMA at a party.

Ms Sheppard said it was not suggested the gifts were to encourage the teen to have sex with him but more “part and parcel of the nature of their relationship”.

The court heard he also told not to tell anyone about the relationship and if anyone wanted to conduct “a swab test on her vagina she should say no and run away”.

But within weeks he found out she was only 15 and still continued the sexual relationship.

Police received an anonymous tip off about the pair resulting in the man’s arrest in 2024.

And despite no contact orders being in place against the teen, he reached out and urged her to write a letter to police to alleviate his guilt.

In the letter she told police they planned to move to Brisbane “when I was old enough” and that “the ring was for me when I was old enough”.

The court heard she later told officers she hadn’t wanted to give police the letter but did so “because she wanted to keep receiving gifts”.

She also told police “she wore the pants in that relationship”.

Now 30, he pleaded guilty to 11 charges including repeated sexual conduct with a child, penile intercourse with a child under 16, indecent treatment of a child under 16, aggravated supply of dangerous drugs and attempted to pervert the course of justice – and has spent almost 11 months in custody on remand.

Barrister Scott McLennan told the court his client had not deliberately set about having a relationship with an underage teen.

“He’s fallen in love with the (teen) and then hasn’t had the willpower to either end the relationship or stop the sexual relationship,” Mr McLennan said, adding his client had no criminal history.

Judge Lynham said the man maintained the illegal relationship for about nine months until she was 16.

The court heard he told police she had been drunk many times when they’d had sex.

“You were making payments on a ring you had purchased to give (her) … you wanted to marry her … and you were genuinely in love with (her),” Judge Lynham said.

“She was disinterested in marrying you but she seemed to appreciate the gifts you were showering upon her.”

Judge Lynham accepted there had not been a power imbalance in the relationship, that the man had not been in a position of trust or care for her, and there was no manipulation, coercion or threats, but it was an “utterly inappropriate” relationship with a 15 year old.

The court also heard he suffered from an intellectual impairment and was on disability support but had been working full time before he was taken into custody.

He was jailed for 3.5 years immediately suspended with the time on remand declared time already served. The remaining jail term will hang over his head for four years.

Convictions were recorded and Judge Lynham warned the man to never get involved with an underage teen against.

Originally published as Whitsunday man handed suspended jail term over illegal romance with teen