A Queensland man has been jailed for nine years after pleading guilty to kidnapping and sexually assaulting a German backpacker who answered a fake job ad.

According to reports Peter Van de Wetering reportedly used drug-laced chocolates, a fake beard and a promise of work to hoodwink a 19-year-old tourist before driving her to a remote property at Cottonvale, on the southern Darling Downs, where a horrific attack took place.

The ABC reports that the court heard the young woman was tied to a bed with cable ties and taunted with threats of putting a gun down her throat to stop her from screaming before Van der Wetering, 49, sexually assaulted and digitally raped her.

The woman was then drugged again and found walking on roadside about 1:30am on August 14, 2013.

Judge Terry Martin acknowledged the attack as “terrifying and degrading”, and said the victim continued to suffer psychological damage.

“The scars from the cable ties remained clearly visible for 1.5 years, no doubt being a constant reminder to her of her horrific ordeal,” Judge Martin said.

“She continues to be afraid of the dark, and it took her a long time to be able to stay at home alone overnight.”

Deeming Van der Wetering a serious violent offender, Judge Martin said: “This offending involves an entirely ruthless pursuit of a young and innocent woman for your sexual gratification.

“This offending involves extensive planning and preparation.”

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An Australian man on a rugby trip to the United States has been arrested in California after allegedly trying to arrange sex with a six-year-old boy, authorities reveal.

AAP reports Michael John Quinn, 33, from Melbourne was picked up on an undercover sting operation after he tried to organise a meet up with a pimp offering up the child for sex for $250.

Homeland Security officials alleged Mr Quinn was chatting on a social networking site that caters to pedophiles and making arrangements even before he left for the US.

“He had various names that he used on various different accounts, he was using three different accounts online to communicate with him,” said special agent Kelly Kottas.

“There was an internet social media site that he was using to send emails and he was also using various mobile applications to communicate.”

Quinn told the agents he had plans to meet up “other pervs” later in the month, as well as a father “who shares his young ones”.

In official complaint documents an undercover agent accuses Quinn of proposing they “molest a child together”.

Authorities say the accused was travelling with his rugby team, the Melbourne Chargers who were due to play a tournament in Nashville, but stress that none of his teammates knew what Quinn was up to.

“They were unaware of where he was at that day or what his activities were. They’re completely not involved in this at all,” Quinn told AAP.

Quinn was arrested in an LA hotel room when he handed over payment for a child to have sex with to an undercover HSI agent and he was charged with attempted sex trafficking of a minor – a charge which carries a minimum sentence of 15 years and a maximum of life without parole.

There is also the possibility of him getting 30 years in prison on a charge of travelling with the intent of engaging in illicit sexual conduct.

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Sarma Melngailis was the face of New York’s trendy vegan movement.

Jumping on the craze early the Ivy League grad – she has B.A. in Economics from the University of Pennsylvania and a B.S. in Economics from Wharton School – saw vegan food as a lucrative market and in the mid noughties

opened up New York City’s first upscale raw food restaurant, Pure Food and Wine.

The 43-year-old capitalised on the fashionable food faction with her eatery becoming a favorite among A-list devotees like Alec Baldwin, Woody Harelson and Daryl Hannah.

As her hip status sky rocketed so did her profits but it now it’s being alleged there was a seedy side to the vegan poster girl’s purity.

Melngailis is on $485,000 bail and facing 15 years in jail after being accused of siphoning $2.78 million from her business and using it to bankroll her lavish lifestyle, including fancy European holidays, gambling debts, Rolexs and $10,000 in Uber car rides.

It is alleged that Melngailis neglected to pay staff for nearly five months and in the end it was a Domino’s cheese pizza that saw her ethics-preaching empire collapse.

Melngailis and her husband Anthony Strangis were on the run from police for 10 months but one night when they got hungry “detectives were able to track down Anthony Strangis and Sarma by a pizza delivery sent to their hotel,” Bob Stahkle, a spokesman for the Sevierville, Tennessee Police Department, reports the NY Post.

The well-known restaurateur spoke to the NY Post from prison and rebuffed any misconduct.

“It’s the worst nightmare you can think of,” she said from her prison cell. “If I had terminal cancer, it would be better than this, because at least [then] I did not cause it … I love my workers. When I come out, I will find something to do and pay it back.”

Melngailis also threw some shade on the influence of her husband, Mr Strangis who has previous convictions for grand theft and impersonating a police officer.

Melngailis said: “Things were going well when I was single.”

But in a he-said-she-said style argument Mr Strangis’ lawyer told the NY Post “We really just ask that the public reserves judgment until we figure out what’s going on.”

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This week a couple of Australian psychiatrists argued antidepressants might not be that effective.

It’s a big statement, given Australia has one of the highest rates of antidepressant use in the world.

In the article, published in the Australian Medical Journal, Dr Christopher Davey and Dr Andrew Chanen say many users symptoms would pass with or without the medication. In short, for many a placebo would be just as effective.

“The more we’ve researched the effectiveness of antidepressants the more we’ve come to understand that they’re not very effective,” says Dr Davey.

“Perhaps too often the focus is antidepressants, but really medication is just one component of treatment and shouldn’t be the entire focus,” he explains.

But 38-year-old Joanne rebuked the article, claiming she is focused, rational and generally happier when she takes antidepressants.

“Without them I am sleepy, very down on everything but most of all I experience severe anxiety and panic attacks,” she says.

Speaking with aww.com.au Dr Davey says there is a danger that antidepressants are being over prescribed as a ‘quick fix’.

“Too often antidepressants are being prescribed as the first step or only step rather than looking at other treatments,” he says.

“Doctors are trying to help. It’s easier to write a script for antidepressants than to refer people to see a psychotherapist,” he explains.

Dr Davey notes that despite Medicare making psychotherapy more affordable, psychotherapists are not accessible for everyone who needs them.

“Psychotherapists tend to be clustered in wealthier or inner-city suburbs and less in suburban or regional areas where people really them,” he says.

For 28-year-old Tegan Churchill* it’s the combination of antidepressants and therapy that keeps the black dog away.

“They help keep the fuzziness of depression at bay,” says Tegan.

“They give me enough of a boost to be able to get out of bed each morning. They also help keep the pit of dread out of my stomach,” she says.

But Tegan also notes that taking antidepressants help her to engage in therapy.

“The medication brings me to a level mentally where I can see past the fog. When I am deeply depressed I can only see the negative and nothing gets through.

“It’s kind of like floaties for kids. The medication doesn’t do everything, but it gives me enough help that I’m not sinking completely,” she explains.

Psychologist Mady Edkins says that diet and exercise can play a vital role in overcoming depression and anxiety. However, she notes that motivation is a huge barrier.

“When people are suffering with low mood, lethargy, lack of hope and poor sleep it can be almost impossible to exercise and have good self care,” she says.

Edkins notes that medication can help to get people to a place where self-care strategies are possible.

“Medication can help the person do the things that will make them feel better,” she says.

Joanne agrees. “When I’m taking the medication I think more clearly so am able to consciously eat well and exercise,” she says.

“When I am feeling down it’s like the junk food and the lack of motivation go hand in hand….it’s a vicious cycle.”

Dr Davey notes that the sharp rise in people taking antidepresants proves that there is now less stigma around depression than there used to be. However, it’s important that we continue to raise awareness about depression.

“Organisations such as Beyond Blue have helped promote the idea that people should seek treatment for depression,” he says.

“More people are recognising depression and trying to get help.”

What do you think? Send us an email at [email protected].

• Surname withheld for privacy

Writer_contributor Cat Rodie

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