A former political figure, who mentored two teenage boys in the 1990s, was sentenced to two-and-a-half years in prison for sexually abusing them.
Despite his ongoing denial of the offenses, he was found guilty of eight charges of indecent assault.
The abuse occurred under circumstances involving the victims being asleep, intoxicated, or unconscious, displaying a significant breach of trust given his senior position.
The sentencing took into account reparations and his previously good character, but the judge emphasised the severe emotional harm caused to the survivors, whose testimonies revealed deep, lasting trauma from the abuse.
The former political figure has been under interim name suppression for 667 days and is now making his sixth bid for a permanent suppression order to maintain his anonymity.
The has instructed his lawyer to appeal the sentence in the High Court and sought bail during the appeal process. The court rejected the bail application and also refused the offender’s plea to delay the start of his prison term by at least a week to “organise his personal matters.”
