🔗 Share this article Former Down Under Politician Imprisoned for More Than Five Years for Sex Crimes The convicted individual was imprisoned for nearly six years for sexual assaults of two individuals One-time public official sentenced of assaulting two young men he met through work has been sentenced to 69 months in detention. Trial Information The defendant, forty-four, remained in prison since July after a jury determined his guilt of attacking one man and indecently assaulting another individual, in multiple events in 2013 and 2015. The defendant represented the oceanfront municipality of the district in the New South Wales parliament from over a decade ago. He stepped down as a political party cabinet member when the claims came to light in 2021 but resisted resigning from his seat and returned to office in 2023. Judgment Information Judge Kara Shead took into account his visual impairment of legal blindness in her sentence and determined "no other penalty besides detention would be suitable". The defendant, who was present via digital means at the courthouse, will complete at minimum nearly four years in detention before he can seek early release. Justice Shead declared the court needs to "send a stern message to like-minded offenders that criminal acts such as this will be met with salutary penalties". Case Background She also said the defendant had "escaped justice for multiple years and experienced freedom absent a rehabilitation program or penalty for his crimes during that time". Post-trial, Ward launched a unsuccessful legal bid to stay in his position and stepped down just prior to the members could remove him. His legal team has stated earlier he aims to appeal the ruling. Case Facts The defendant's nine-week trial in the judicial venue learned that he invited a inebriated 18-year-old man to his property in the first incident and indecently assaulted him repeatedly, despite the victim's efforts to fight back. Two years later, he sexually assaulted a mid-twenties government employee at his home after a function at parliament. The defendant had argued the 2015 rape was fabricated, and that the other complainant was misremembering their interaction from the earlier year. The state's attorneys maintained that striking similarities in the testimonies of the victims, who did not know the other, demonstrated they were being honest. The panel debated for multiple days before delivering the findings of guilt. His departure caused a by-election in Kiama in last fall, which was claimed by the Labor candidate.