A pizza delivery worker who impregnated a 15-year-old child has appealed his prison sentence.
Nathaniel Roberts, 27, of Morwell, Australia, was sentenced to five and a half years in prison with a three-year non-parole period at the County Court last year after entering a guilty plea to four counts of sexually molesting a child under the age of 16.
The crime was committed by Roberts in August 2020 when she was 24 years old, and the victim, who cannot be named, was 15 years old.
The victim and Edwards allegedly first met at a residence in Victoria, Australia, in August 2020, and a sexual “relationship” quickly followed.
According to a written summary of the prosecution provided by the County Court, Edwards had been informed by the victim that she was only 15 years old, and they had frequently discussed their age gap.
The victim informed her mother that the father was approximately 25 years old and that she was worried she would be pregnant in September 2020. It was discovered that she was pregnant in October of that year.
Before calling their “relationship” off, Roberts told the victim he wanted her to get an abortion and that he would assist her in doing so.
The law in Victoria sets the minimum age of consent at 16 and a person who takes part in an act of sexual penetration with a child under 16 is guilty of an indictable offence carrying a maximum penalty of up to 25 years imprisonment.
Sentencing Roberts last year, County Court Judge Michael McInerney said the legislation was designed to protect young children and there could be no consent at the age of 15.
On Tuesday, April 18, 2023, Roberts’ barrister Joe Connelly told the Court of Appeal that the victim had shown “more than acquiescence” in the pair’s sexual “relationship”, adding that “in so far as a child can give consent, she did”.
He added there was no grooming or force and the pair’s “relationship” was “relatively short”.
Robyn Harper, for the Crown, said the maximum penalty Roberts faced was 15 years, with the sentence handed down 33 percent of that maximum penalty.
Harper said the aggravating factor in the offending was Roberts’ ejaculation inside the victim, which had caused her pregnancy.
She said the crime was “particularly serious,” and told the court that the sentence imposed was “clearly not outside the range.”
“The consequences were significant,” Harper said.