WHEN a five-year-old boy was befriended by a man who was swimming with his dog at Sans Souci there was no way for him to know this meeting was the start of grooming process which would lead to his sexual molestation.
Convicted paedophile Warren Leslie Christian, 64, was sentenced to a minimum of seven years' imprisonment on Friday, almost two decades after he sexually assaulted the boy he first met in the water.
Judge Jonathon Williams sentenced Christian to a maximum of 11 years in custody. He will be eligible for parole on December 9, 2017.
He was found guilty of seven charges, including sexual intercourse and the indecent assault of a victim under the age of 10, in August, 2012.
Six of the seven offences took place in the 1990s when the victim was aged between five and nine.
The sexual assaults occurred in Christian's Sans Souci house on three separate occasions when the victim was invited to come inside.
He told his victim he would get into trouble if he were to tell anyone what had happened to him.
During sentencing Judge Williams said he had taken into consideration Christian continued to deny any wrongdoing.
"[The offences] were opportunistic," Judge Williams said.
"Children should be allowed to develop in their own time," he said.
The court heard the victim had suffered confusion about his sexuality growing up as a result of the assaults.
This confusion led him to have consensual sex with the offender when he turned 18, as he tried to figure out whether he was homosexual.
Christian was first found guilty of the offences by jury in 2010 but appealed the conviction in the Court of Criminal Appeal in March 2012.
A retrial was ordered and Christian was released from jail. He was taken back into custody after he was found guilty of all charges in his third trial in August.
