A teenager who sexually assaulted an 18-year-old woman after taking her from a house party will not serve time in prison after an ACT judge ruled that his recent arrival in Australia and limited sexual experience reduced his moral culpability.
The offender, identified by the pseudonym Lucas Hancock in court documents, assaulted the woman during a gathering in Canberra’s north-west on August 1, 2025.
The teenager, who was 16 when the offence occurred, pleaded guilty to sexual intercourse without consent. He had no prior convictions and had spent one day in custody in connection with the case.
On Tuesday, ACT Supreme Court Justice Andrew Muller imposed an 18-month prison sentence, but suspended it in full. The teenager will instead remain in the community under a good behaviour order.
In his sentencing remarks, Justice Muller noted that the teenager had moved to Australia from Bhutan only six months before the assault and had no previous sexual experience.
“I accept his prior lack of sexual experience and inevitably limited insight into societal norms in Australia given his very short time in the country prior to the offending are factors mitigating his moral culpability,” Justice Muller said.
The decision quickly drew condemnation from One Nation Senator Malcolm Roberts, who criticised the suspended sentence.
“Disgusting,” he wrote in a social media post on Wednesday.
ACT Supreme Court Justice Andrew Muller (pictured) has faced criticism after suspending the prison sentence imposed on a teenage boy who sexually assaulted a young woman at a house party
“If rape is acceptable in the country from which the rapist came, then deport everyone from that country,” Roberts wrote.
“What do you want for Australia? What do you want for Australian women?”
Agreed facts presented to the court said the teenager approached the victim, referred to as DS, at the party and asked her to go for a walk.
He took her away from her friends to a nearby greenbelt, where the two began kissing, according to the court.
The court heard that the teenager then pinned the 18-year-old to the ground and sexually assaulted her in multiple ways.
DS told police she “just froze” during the assault because she was frightened and felt “trapped under him”.
She said she told the teenager to “stop” and made clear that she did not want any sexual activity to occur.
Before imposing the sentence, Justice Muller identified 12 aggravating factors that increased the seriousness of the offending.
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The offender, known as Lucas Hancock in court documents, sexually assaulted the young woman at a gathering in Canberra’s north-west on August 1, 2025. He was sentenced in the ACT Supreme Court in Canberra on Tuesday (file image)
Among those factors, the judge found that Hancock had led DS away from the “relative safety of the group environment” without seeking her consent.
Justice Muller also found that he continued after DS began crying and asked him to stop, tore her clothing and “used considerable force in pursuit of his own sexual gratification”.
Justice Muller further noted Hancock prevented DS from answering her phone and subjected her to multiple sexual acts over an extended period.
He also acknowledged the disparity in physical size and strength between the two teenagers.
‘The particular circumstances of the offending were humiliating and degrading, involving significant physical force, and disregard for the wishes of DS in circumstances where she had little capacity to defend herself,’ Justice Muller said.
‘Here the offending involves the use of significant force without consent against a vulnerable young person who was placed in a situation where she was denied any prospective protector. That offending is properly regarded as serious.’
In a victim impact statement, DS described the profound emotional and psychological impact of the attack, including suffering flashbacks.
‘(I) can no longer call my body my own,’ she said, adding that her life was stolen and will forever be changed following the assault.
Malcolm Roberts (left) called the judgment ‘disgusting’, arguing cultural norms were irrelevant
DS told the court she had just turned 18 years old and instead of adventure and opportunity, she was raped at a party which was ‘filled with people (she) knew’.
The court heard that, after the assault, she struggled to perform everyday tasks, including brushing her teeth, bathing and maintaining personal hygiene for months afterwards.
In his sentencing remarks, Justice Muller concluded Hancock has since developed a better understanding of consent.
‘What is clear is he now realises the giving of consent to sexual interaction necessarily involves clear and active communications to that effect, not just an absence of express refusal,’ Justice Muller said.
While Justice Muller found the gravity of the offending was such that imprisonment was warranted, he concluded the teenager’s rehabilitation would be better served in the community rather than custody.
Hancock will remain under court supervision until April 2028.
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