A BALLARAT man who allegedly used Facebook to procure sex with a 14-year-old girl claims it was his alternative personality.
The 27-year-old man used the name of a character from a popular American television series to communicate with a 14-year-old girl over Facebook, a court has heard.
Crown prosecutor Angela Moran told the court during a 10-day period in January the man used the Facebook messenger app to organise a date to meet up with the victim after telling her “I’m hard for you and want to see you”.
Ms Moran said the accused sent photos of his penis and the pair role-played sex over the social media app.
The court heard the accused and the victim met on two occasions at Pioneer Park, having sexual intercourse on one occasion.
Ms Moran said the victim told her mother about the meeting after fears she could be pregnant because the accused didn’t wear a condom.
She said the accused made admissions about the alleged incident, but told police “he had multiple personalities”.
Appearing in a County Court sitting in Ballarat on Thursday, the man pleaded guilty to one count of using a carriage service to procure a person under the age of 16 years to engage in sexual activities and two counts of sexual penetration with a child under 16.
Giving evidence, the accused’s father told the court his son had few friends, was bullied throughout secondary school and as a result “he went downhill, he couldn’t cope”.
He said his son turned to the goth subculture which he believed his son hid his problems behind.
Lawyer Daniel McGlone, for the accused, said his client was “an isolated person with ongoing psychiatric issues”.
Mr McGlone said he believed his client would be vulnerable in prison despite the Crown’s submission for an immediate custodial term.
“I think he would find prison more difficult than others,” he said.
Describing the case as “the most complicated case I’ve heard in a long time”, Judge Lance Pilgram adjourned the hearing until next week.
