Previous Australian Public Figure Jailed for Over Five Years for Sex Crimes
An ex- lawmaker found guilty of sexually abusing two young men encountered via professional activities received a sentence to 69 months in prison.
Trial Information
Gareth Ward, forty-four, remained in jail since July after a jury found him guilty of raping one man and indecently assaulting another, in separate incidents in over two years.
The defendant represented the seaside community of the district in the NSW government from 2011. He left his position as a political party minister when the claims surfaced in recent years but declined to leave the legislature and won again in 2023.
Sentencing Details
Justice Kara Shead considered his visual impairment of sight disability in the ruling and concluded "no different consequence except for imprisonment could be considered".
The defendant, who appeared via digital means at the courthouse, will undergo at no less than nearly four years in detention before he can apply for conditional freedom.
Justice Shead declared the judicial system needs to "deliver a strong warning to similar individuals that criminal acts of this nature will be met with serious punishments".
Additional Information
She also said Ward had "evaded consequences for multiple years and enjoyed a life without a rehabilitation program or punishment for his actions during that period".
Following the verdict, the individual attempted a failed court challenge to continue in government and stepped down just prior to the members could expel him.
His legal team has previously said he aims to challenge the guilty verdict.
Incident Details
His lengthy proceedings in the state court learned that he asked a drunk 18-year-old man to his home in the first incident and attacked him repeatedly, despite the victim's efforts to resist.
Subsequently, he raped a mid-twenties office worker at his residence after a function at the legislature.
The defendant had claimed the 2015 rape never occurred, and that the additional accuser was misremembering their meeting from the earlier year.
However, prosecutors maintained that striking similarities in the testimonies of the individuals, who did not know one another, proved they were being honest.
The panel deliberated for 72 hours before returning the convictions.
The political exit led to a special election in the district in autumn, which was claimed by the Labor candidate.
