Former NRL star Brett Finch has avoided a custodial sentence for sending messages about child sexual abuse on a phone chat service, after a judge accepted they were desperate attempts to feed his drug addiction.
Finch was arrested in Sydney in late 2021 and pleaded guilty to one count of using a carriage service to transmit or publish child abuse material.
The 41-year-old has previously told a Sydney court he's "disgusted" in himself for sending the "twisted" audio messages, which he claimed were part of desperate attempts to obtain cocaine.
The ex-NRL player used a service called FastMeet and described fantasies about young boys, and told a judge he thought he could connect with "hypersexualised" users who had have access to drugs.
He denied having a sexual interest in children.
NSW District Court Judge Phillip Mahony today said the seven short messages Finch left on the service could only be described as "highly depraved and sexualised".
But he accepted Finch's explanation of why he used the service and that he was remorseful.
Judge Mahony also took into account Finch's contribution to the community in the form of charity work and said the media reporting of his case had been above and beyond the usual coverage about such offending.
He said some readers of news articles may have mistakenly inferred Finch was a paedophile, however noted this was "a direct consequence" of the language he used in his offending.
The judge found there were exceptional circumstances in the case due to a combination of factors, including that the offending did not involve any actual children and Finch's insight into his underlying addiction.
While he will serve a two-year sentence in the community under a recognisance release order, a conviction was recorded and Finch will remain under a series of conditions including to be of good behaviour and remain under the care of his treating psychologist for 12 months.
"You must understand this is a jail sentence you are required to serve in the community," Judge Mahony told Finch, warning him that any breach of the conditions would mean he'll be back before the court.
Finch left the messages at a time when he was heavily addicted to cocaine and using up to 25 grams per week, the court heard.
But he claimed he stopped using the chat service in early 2021 when someone replied offering to meet and engage in child abuse, leaving him feeling "sick".
The court heard a psychologist reported that following his 2013 retirement, he "found himself adrift" without the structure of being a routine professional sportsman.
The psychiatrist concluded a likely diagnosis was substance abuse disorder.
The court heard of his three attempts to overcome addiction in rehabilitation facilities between 2014 and 2016.
The judge said Finch had demonstrated "insight into the enormity of the struggle he now faces" and said the court acknowledged it was "no mean feat" to overcome drug addiction.
Finch admitted in court he's now lost everything, including friends, and was unable to find work, but he said he understands why "no one wants to come near me".
