CONTENT WARNING: This article discusses child sexual abuse.
A former Sydney teacher and deputy principal (!!!) who taught maths at Kellyville High School in Sydney’s north west has been sentenced to prison after he tried to meet a (fake) 14-year-old girl for sex.
Damien Scott Wanstall, 49, was arrested after he was caught talking to — and ultimately trying to meet with — the 14-year-old in 2020, who he met online.
Surprise: “she” was actually an undercover cop who responded to an online ad Wanstall put up as part of an operation by the New South Wales Police Child Exploitation Internet Unit.
In the messages, Wanstall asked for “raunchy” pictures from the fictitious teen multiple times, and asked her not to wear her school uniform when they met “so it would look less suss”, reports ABC News.
He pleaded guilty to one count of using a carriage service to procure a person under 16 years of age for sexual activity, and was sentenced to three years and seven months in jail on Wednesday.
“Fortunately for our community that was not a 14-year-old,” Judge Andrew Colefax said during the sentencing at Parramatta District Court, per ABC News.
Judge Colefax described Wanstall’s messages with the fake-teen as “very graphic” and said their conversations “developed to quite a concerning level”.
“You’re a parent yourself,” the judge said.
“How do you think parents would react if their 14-year-old daughter was being preyed upon by a man like you? Because that was what you were doing.”
The court heard that Wanstall told his psychiatrist Andrew Ellis that he spoke to the teen “to make his previous partner jealous”, which Dr Ellis called “irrational”.
“This is a man who’s a school teacher who’s well aware of the laws of interacting with young people,” he told the court, per ABC News.
“If he’s motivated to get back with his partner, this is possibly the worst way to go about it.”
You got that right.
Dr Ellis also diagnosed Wanstall with an alcohol use disorder, which he said could have contributed to impulsivity and a lack of regard for consequences.
However, the court heard some of the messages he sent the “online identity” were sent when he wasn’t drinking, and Dr Ellis said Wanstall “certainly had a sexual motivation; he wanted to have sex with somebody”.
The court heard Wanstall was considered at a low risk of re-offending. He will be eligible for parole in May 2025.
Earlier this month, another Sydney high school teacher Eric Wong was jailed for taking indecent photos of students. He was then freed from prison hours later after his lawyers announced they would appeal the sentence.
Help is available.
- If you require immediate assistance, please call 000.
- If you’d like to speak to someone about sexual violence, please call the 1800 Respect hotline on 1800 737 732 or chat online.
- Under 25? You can reach Kids Helpline at 1800 55 1800 or chat online.
Image: iStock / Julia Gomina
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