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District Court 15 October 2025

R v Dixon (a pseudonym)

[2025] NSWDC 408

Sexual offencesFraud & dishonesty
CRIME SEXUAL OFFENCES SENTENCING RELEVANT FACTORS ON SENTENCE PLEA OF GUILTY FORM 1

Citation: R v Dixon (a pseudonym) [2025] NSWDC 408
Court: District Court of New South Wales
Date: 15 October 2025
Judge(s): Priestley SC DCJ

Background

The offender appeared for sentence on one charge of sexual intercourse without consent under section 61I of the Crimes Act 1900, with a second charge of the same offence dealt with on a Form 1 (that is, taken into account in sentencing without a separate conviction being recorded). The offender had previously engaged the victim's commercial sexual services on two occasions, paying as agreed each time. On the third occasion, in August 2023, he showed the victim a fraudulent receipt purporting to confirm payment of the balance owing. Believing she had been paid, the victim provided the services. No payment was ever made.

The prosecution established the absence of consent by relying on section 61HJ(1)(k) of the Crimes Act 1900, a provision introduced in 2022 that deems a person not to have consented to a sexual activity if they participated because of a "fraudulent inducement." That provision was enacted partly in response to Law Reform Commission findings about the inadequate protection of sex workers defrauded of payment.

The offender pleaded guilty at an early stage, had been held in pre-sentence custody for approximately 144 days, and had commenced rehabilitation. He was 37 years old and had no prior sexual offending.

  • What was the objective seriousness of this offending under section 61HJ(1)(k), given the absence of physical violence or coercion?
  • Whether the victim's occupation rendered her a "vulnerable" victim as an aggravating factor under sentencing law
  • Whether the degree of planning constituted a statutory aggravating factor
  • Whether financial gain was a separate aggravating factor
  • Whether the victim impact statement complied with section 28 of the Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act 1999
  • What weight to give the offender's rehabilitation, and whether special circumstances justified a non-parole period departing from the standard

Decision

Priestley SC DCJ found the offending fell in the low range of objective seriousness. The court accepted the Crown's concession that offences under section 61I vary in gravity, and that this instance involved no physical harm, violence, threats, degradation, or power imbalance. The victim's participation, though induced by deception, was willing. The fraudulent preparation of a false receipt involved some premeditation, but the court did not characterise this as "planned or organised criminal activity" within the meaning of the statutory aggravating factor.

On the question of vulnerability, the court agreed with Penfold J in R v Livas [2015] ACTSC 50 that sex workers are a vulnerable category of worker, typically in the sense of exposure to physical assault. However, the court reasoned that this offence involved deception rather than physical violence, and that the victim was no more vulnerable to this particular type of fraud than any other person providing a service for payment. The vulnerability factor was therefore given little weight. Financial gain was treated as intrinsic to the nature of the fraud rather than a separate aggravating feature.

The victim impact statement was the subject of objection from the offender, who argued that significant portions went beyond permissible content under section 28 of the Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act 1999. The court accepted that objection as valid in part, finding that portions of the statement attributed views and motivations to the offender, made generalisations about men and women, and commented on the justice system, none of which fell within the permissible scope of particularising harm suffered by the victim. The court gave weight only to the permissible portions.

On sentence, the court found special circumstances warranting a non-parole period significantly below the standard of 7 years, given the low objective seriousness, a 25% discount for the early guilty plea, and the particular importance of rehabilitation continuing in the community. The court accepted psychiatric evidence that a return to custody would disrupt the offender's rehabilitation progress. A total term of 12 months (after discount, from a pre-discount starting point of 16 months to account for the Form 1 matter) was imposed, with the non-parole period set at the 144 days already served in pre-sentence custody.

Orders Made

  • The offender was convicted of sexual intercourse without consent.
  • The offender was sentenced to a term of imprisonment commencing 25 May 2025, with a non-parole period expiring 15 October 2025 and a balance of term expiring 24 May 2026.

Key Takeaways

  • Section 61HJ(1)(k) of the Crimes Act 1900, enacted in 2022, captures sexual intercourse obtained through fraudulent inducement, including the use of a false payment receipt to deceive a sex worker into providing services. The provision does not, however, extend to all misrepresentations.
  • The District Court confirmed that offences under section 61I exist on a spectrum of seriousness, and that the absence of physical violence, coercion, or humiliation can place an offence in the low range of objective seriousness even where an element of premeditation is present.
  • A finding that sex workers are a vulnerable category of worker does not automatically translate into significant weight as an aggravating factor where the offending involves deception rather than physical assault or robbery.
  • Victim impact statements that attribute motivations to an offender, make generalisations beyond the victim's personal harm, or comment on the adequacy of the justice system fall outside the permissible scope of section 28 of the Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act 1999, and courts will disregard those portions.
  • Where pre-sentence custody combined with rehabilitation progress and low objective seriousness together constitute special circumstances, a court may set the non-parole period at the time already served, allowing the balance of the sentence to be served on parole in the community.

Legislation and Cases Referenced

Legislation
- Crimes Act 1900 (NSW), ss 61I, 61HJ(1)(k)
- Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act 1999 (NSW), ss 21A(2)(n), 28, 30E

Cases
- Attorney General's Application under s 37 of the Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act 1999 No 1 of 2002 (2002) 56 NSWLR
- R v De La Rosa [2010] NSWCCA 194
- R v Livas [2015] ACTSC 50