A Salvation Army Salvos youth support worker has been sentenced to a minimum of six months in prison for having sex with a 17-year-old girl who was staying at the homeless shelter where he worked.
On Friday Frederick Jeremiah, 35, pleaded guilty to having sexual intercourse with a minor aged between 17 and 18 who was in his care and was sentenced in the NSW District Court on Wednesday morning.
The court heard how Jeremiah worked as a youth support therapy worker and took advantage of the girl’s “vulnerability” to become intimate with her and have sex with her.
He was sentenced to nine months in prison, with a non-parole period of six months.
The court heard how Jeremiah asked the girl what she was “interested” in sexually.
“The victim did not say much as she felt uncomfortable,” the court heard.
The youth therapy worker then took the victim from the shelter to a nearby park and grabbed her head and kissed her, which the victim said she found “uncomfortable”.
He then took her to a tree, removed his trousers and engaged in sexual intercourse with her.
Jeremiah then returned to the shelter and told the girl to wait 10 minutes before returning so as not to arouse suspicion.
The girl then messaged her friend to tell her what had happened.
Jeremiah continued to message the girl for months, even after she left the shelter and moved to a long-term facility.
At one point, he sent her a picture of his genitals with the message “Let sleeping dogs lie,” to which she did not respond.
The victim later messaged Jeremiah about boundaries and told him their relationship was unprofessional and should not continue.
Then she complained about Jeremiah.
In his sentencing, Judge Andrew Scotting said Jeremiah had been “deceptive” and “secretive” about the relationship.
Initially, Jeremiah asked her to save his contact information as “Uncle Chad” so that no one would know it was “his number.”
He also told her that she was his “favorite customer” and not to tell other employees about their friendship.
He also gave the victim “life advice” and emotional support during her stay at the centre.
Judge Scotting said that while the issue of consent was not an element in the case, the conduct was a “serious breach of trust”.
He also noted that the “big age difference” plays a role.
“As the victim was a resident she was in a vulnerable position and the offender took advantage of that vulnerability to approach her and have sex with her,” Judge Scotting said.
The court heard that Jeremiah was the family’s sole source of income.
He also sends money to his family in Nigeria, who emigrated to Australia in 2008.
Judge Scotting noted that Jeremiah had a good employment history and was an active volunteer at his church.
But he noted that the perpetrator’s own good character was “compromised to some extent” because he “relied on his own good character to be a caretaker for vulnerable people like his victims.”
One of Jeremiah’s relatives, who was in the courtroom when the sentence was handed down, began crying loudly in the courtroom as the defendant was taken into custody.
He will be eligible for parole on December 3rd.
news.com.au has contacted the Salvation Army for comment.
