The victim of a 23-year-old Canberra man who pleaded guilty to raping her and filming it has delivered an emotional victim-impact statement in court ahead of his sentencing later this month.
The victim, who was a child when the offences took place, today told the ACT Supreme Court that Angus Gottaas-Hughes's actions "stole" her body from her, leaving her feeling dirty and "disgusting".
In May 2021 the Australian Federal Police were tipped off by a foreign intelligence agency that a Canberra resident — later identified as Gottaas-Hughes — was suspected of accessing child abuse material.
Police raided his home in Ainslie in Canberra's north in December that year, and said they discovered over 1,000 images and videos downloaded from the internet which depicted child exploitation material. About half of that material was described as "animated content".
Officers also said they found footage showing Gottaas-Hughes raping the unconscious underage victim on one occasion, and groping her on two others between January and August 2020.
In December last year, he pleaded guilty to all seven charges related to the sexual assaults, and to possession of child abuse material.
The victim — who cannot be identified — today cried as she told the court how she felt dirty after discovering what had happened to her.
"I remember crying in the shower, covered in soap, because no matter how much soap I used I felt disgusting," she said
"This wasn't my body anymore. You stole that from me."
Gottaas-Hughes initially lied to police, court hears
Prosecutor Morgan Howe told the court the Crown had an overwhelming case against Gottaas-Hughes, due to the considerable amount of objective evidence against him.
He said while Gottaas-Hughes's guilty pleas and general cooperation with police were noteworthy, they should not lead to a significant reduction in sentencing.
The prosecution also told the court Gottaas-Hughes initially lied to police, which took away from other assistance he had offered.
When questioned about the footage found by police in 2021, Mr Howe told the court Gottaas-Hughes initially said he and the victim were friends with benefits and that she had a kink for being touched while asleep.
Defence lawyer Kieran Ginges told the court these comments were a knee-jerk reaction from his client, and argued police would not have been able to identify the victim had Gottaas-Hughes not volunteered to do so.
Mr Ginges also read to the court an apology letter written to the victim by Gottaas-Hughes.
"The hurt I've caused you is unforgivable,"Gottaas-Hughes said in the letter.
"It is my earnest hope that you will recover from this one day."
Mr Ginges told the court his client's youth was at the heart of the case, and that he was not without redemption. He also said Gottaas-Hughes was receiving intensive psychiatric counselling and that a lengthy non-parole term would prevent him from continuing to access this support.
Justice Belinda Baker thanked the victim for agreeing to read her statement to the court, and said she would sentence Gottaas-Hughes on April 21.
