A former Sydney chief prison officer was given a 23-year prison term for using his position to repeatedly sexually attack female detainees.
As Wayne Gregory Astill appeared before the Downing Center District Court on Friday to discover that he will serve at least 15 years and 4 months in prison, he occasionally shook his head.
Astill was found guilty of 27 charges, including aggravated sexual and indecent assault, by a jury last year. He also admitted to seven additional offences.
He sexually assaulted several prisoners while working at the Dillwynia Correctional Center near Windsor, one of whom was pregnant at the time, according to testimony presented in court today.
The 66-year-old pled guilty to seven counts of willful misconduct in public office for sexual actions and intimate relationships that the court heard were inappropriate but consensual.
Astill began working at Dillwynia in 2009, was given the title of chief in 2016, and then continued to prey on the ladies in his charge.
Authorities were able to identify several of the women he treated differently, shared personal information with, groped and pushed himself on, or had consensual intercourse with.
The court was informed that some of the illicit interactions lasted for more than two years.
While some of the assaults were opportunistic and “brazen,” according to Judge Gina O’Rouke, others displayed preparation and a willful contempt for his responsibility to the convicts and the community.
Sometimes, Astill would entice women into his office by pretending to assist them in finding attorneys, approve of prolonged visitation times, provide them with contraband, or resolve their issues with the jail.
He demanded or coerced the women into engaging in sexual acts in exchange for his “favours,” the court heard.
Also, the former policeman would approach ladies in public spaces and make contact with them.
According to Judge O’Rouke, many of the ladies resisted his attempts and later told police that the assaults felt like they lasted for a “lifetime.”
She said that his misconduct “constituted a gross breach of trust on his behalf to the community… as well as to the detainees to whom he exploited his own rank and position for his own sexual enjoyment.”
According to testimony given in court, Astill put his forearm up against the throat of one woman after she learned about his contact with her friend.
The court heard him telling her to “keep [your] mouth quiet and don’t worry about it otherwise there would be consequences.”
A pregnant woman was sexually assaulted by him in his office once, and he faced threats that she would inform her spouse about the incident.
Astill allegedly assured the woman that no one would find out about what he had done since “he was an ex-police officer and involved with a bikie gang,” according to Judge O’Rourke.
The judge stated that the offender had PTSD and major depressive illness as a result of his profession and personal health struggles, but did not believe that these issues were the cause of his actions.
She claimed that Astill had demonstrated neither regret for his actions nor insight into them and continued to argue that the victims had suffered “no harm.”
According to Astill, he allowed another victim’s request for sex and believes he was duped by one victim.
Judge O’Rourke stated, “The criminal still maintains his denial of guilt.”
The former prison guard was put on administrative leave in 2019 and was also charged by the police.
He will become first eligible for release in December 2037 after serving his sentence.
