A Victorian man who sexually abused a nine-year-old then told her father she “wanted it” has been jailed for at least three years.
Keith Dudley, 58, was sentenced to a maximum of four-and-a-half-years in prison, with a minimum of three years, for indecently and sexually assaulting the girl during 1994 and 1995.
Dudley had told the child he wanted to “help her to be an adult” after abusing the girl in regional Victoria.
On one occasion, Dudley exposed himself to the girl while driving.
“You told her that what you had done was wrong and she shouldn’t tell anyone about it,” Judge Frank Gucciardo said.
When the girl’s father confronted Dudley about the abuse, Judge Gucciardo said Dudley said, “she wanted it”.
When the young girl grew up, she also confronted Dudley about the abuse and when he showed no remorse, she reported him to police in 2015.
Via a victim impact statement, the woman said she did not hate Dudley, nor feel pity for him.
“All I wanted from the start was for him to get help and feel regret and remorse.”
Judge Gucciardo agreed Dudley appeared to show a “wanton indifference” to the ongoing effects from his repugnant and disturbing behaviour.
“You betrayed her trust and her parents’ trust,” he said.
“You exploited her vulnerability, naivety and above all, her innocence.”
Dudley fired two legal teams and ended up representing himself at trial.
He was found guilty of five counts of indecent assault with a child under 16, and one charge of sexual penetration of a child under 10 by a jury in Victorian County Court on Thursday.
On Thursday, Dudley complained about the trial and Judge Gucciardo’s directions to the jury.
“I reject the suggestion that I did nothing to recognise your disadvantage as being unrepresented,” the judge said.
“To a large extent, you failed to cooperate for a large part of the trial.”
Dudley claimed he would commence legal action in the Supreme Court about his sentencing.
