"You ruined my childhood."
These are the words a girl wanted to tell the "monster" who indecently assaulted her, in a powerful victim impact statement read on Friday.
Her abuser, Joseph Tarzia, preyed on the girl when she was 10 years old and offered the child lollies to try and keep her silent.
The girl's voice was heard on Friday, when her mother spoke on her behalf, calling Tarzia "purely disgusting".
"I was just a little kid and no child should have to go through this," the statement read.
"I can still feel your hands on me, no matter how hard I try to forget them.
"No excuse from you, from a full grown man, will ever be good enough."
Tarzia, 32, previously pleaded guilty to one count of committing an act of indecency on a child.
On Friday, special magistrate Sean Richter handed the sex offender a 15-month prison sentence, to be suspended after six months upon him entering into a good behaviour order.
Tarzia, who had a noticeable odour, cried throughout his ACT Magistrates Court sentencing proceedings.
The court heard from the victim's mother, who labelled Tarzia "a monster" and said her daughter now had severe anxiety and bouts of depression.
"She felt disgusting and that there was something wrong with her," the parent told the court.
"Her self-esteem and self-worth are in the toilet."
In 2020, Tarzia, a close friend of the victim's father, molested the girl by touching her genitals, over her clothes, on two occasions.
The first time it lasted 10 minutes, while the second time lasted five minutes.
The man told the child if she didn't tell anyone about the abuse, he would buy her lollies. A few days after the first assault he left a packet of Skittles on the child's bed.
The court heard Tarzia worked as a truck driver and had a problem with illicit drugs, namely cocaine.
He told a report author the crimes happened at "a low point in his life" and he was sorry, but prosecutor Gretta Cuthel argued the court would find it hard to accept his remorse.
Tarzia's lawyer, Ben Clark, said his client was "not a particularly articulate man" but had shown remorse. The lawyer pushed for a sentence in the community rather than behind bars.
Special magistrate Richter spoke directly to Tarzia and said: "You were in a position of trust as one of her dad's mates.
"The effect on this child has been devastating, it has probably changed the trajectory of her life."
- Support is available for those who may be distressed. Phone Lifeline 13 11 14; Canberra Rape Crisis Centre 6247 2525; Bravehearts 1800 272 831; Blue Knot Foundation 1300 657 380.
