Ex-MP Gareth Ward jailed for sexually assaulting two men
Source: AAP
Disgraced former families minister Gareth Ward will spend years behind bars for the “‘predatory” sexual assaults of two young men more than a decade ago.
The 44-year-old former Kiama state MP was found guilty of sexual intercourse without consent and three indecent assaults in July following a NSW District Court trial.
Ward’s acts were “deliberate and predatory”, Judge Kara Shead said during sentencing at Parramatta District Court in western Sydney on Friday.
In raping one of his victims, he was aware the 24-year-old man had voiced his non-consent, the judge said.
“The offender knew that the victim was suffering discomfort and pain yet continued with the sexual intercourse until he achieved sexual satisfaction,” she told the court.
The judge imposed a maximum sentence of five years and nine months.
His non-parole period of three years and nine months will expire on April 29, 2029.
The then-Liberal MP invited a drunk 18-year-old man to his home on the NSW south coast in February 2013 after hearing the teen was having troubles with his girlfriend.
They continued drinking before the MP indecently touched him on the grass outside and then straddled him on the bed in his bedroom.
“No, like I’m going to sleep. Get off,” the teen said while on the politician’s bed.
Ward replied: “No, relax. You know I’ll give you a massage.”
Two years later, Ward sexually assaulted an intoxicated political staffer at his own inner-city apartment after a mid-week event at NSW Parliament House.
The man, who was 24 at the time, said Ward climbed into bed with him, groped his backside and sexually assaulted him despite him repeatedly saying “no”.
He testified to the jury that he was uncomfortable and felt “a jolt kind of pain”.
After reports police were investigating sexual crime allegations in 2021, Ward was removed from his position as minister for families, communities and disability services and shifted to the crossbench.
His personal vote was so significant he was re-elected as an independent during the 2023 election despite the charges hanging over his head.
In doing so, he narrowly avoided becoming the fifth person expelled from NSW parliament in two centuries.
1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732)
National Sexual Abuse and Redress Support Service 1800 211 028
–AAP
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