A cafe worker who made a video of himself masturbating to child abuse material to satisfy a humiliation fetish has been criticized by a judge for his deplorable behaviour.
Stephen Corbett, 37, from Sydney, was arrested on February 1 last year after police reported he was in possession of child abuse material.
He was sentenced on Wednesday to a 12-month correctional order and placed on the child sex offenders list.
According to police data previously obtained by Daily Mail Australia, Corbett was in a master-slave BDSM relationship with a young Filipino man, named James.
James, playing the role of master, sent a video of Corbett masturbating to child abuse material to one of the hospitality worker’s friends to satisfy his slave’s humiliation fetish. The friend then informed the police.
Corbett initially pleaded not guilty in March 2023, but later admitted guilt.
During his sentencing hearing at Waverley Local Court on Wednesday, Magistrate Michael Barko criticized Corbett for his role in perpetuating the appalling child sex trafficking that is rampant in impoverished countries.
The video showed Corbett (pictured) committing a sexual act while watching the exploitation material.
‘This has to stop. This behavior has to stop. And that will not be the case if people in these countries communicate with people here and send them material about child abuse,” said Judge Barko.
‘It is the most serious crime.
‘I congratulate the person for going to the police, who acted quickly. And if they hadn’t, who knows how far that behavior would have gone.
Dressed in a gray suit, Corbett sat alone, hunched over, in the front bench of the courtroom listening to the proceedings, while his parents sat a couple of rows behind him.
Carefully clasping his hands in his lap, he stared stoically at the front of the courtroom.
Addressing Magistrate Barko, Corbett’s lawyer argued that the offense was of low severity because it was a “one-off” and that the idea to make the video came from the 37-year-old’s “teacher.”
Corbett pleaded guilty to one count of possession of child abuse material.
“Usually in these cases, police find a treasure trove in the hundreds or thousands of child abuse material (when they raid offenders’ homes),” he told the court.
‘A video was a support for a domination fetish. The fact that it was child abuse material was secondary to the other fetish.
Corbett’s lawyer said the sentence should take into account that it was his first offense and that he has been under “onerous bail conditions” since his arrest, which included living with his parents, reporting to police twice a week and not agreeing to Internet.
The attorney further argued that Corbett suffered from an undiagnosed bipolar disorder at the time, which featured “hypersexuality” as a symptom.
“He has been seeking help for his depression since 2013, but was only diagnosed with bipolar disorder after his arrest,” his lawyer told the court.
‘The doctor stated that his hypermanic episodes were quite severe at the time of the crime. The doctor found a connection between the disorder and his behavior. There is an imbalance of brain chemicals, which causes cognitive difficulties related to reasoning and behavior.
‘One symptom is hypersexuality. You have been seeking treatment for this condition.
“I propose, your honor, that a sentence should be written for the good of this criminal and the public.”
Magistrate Barko noted that he had previously rejected a bid by Corbett to have the matter dealt with under the mental health law, because he believes that all people who commit sexual offenses against children should be disorderly and the sentence should be applied to the “objective seriousness “of the crime. .
Corbett is photographed leaving court with his lawyer in March 2023.
Stephen Corbett (pictured left) was arrested when a friend reported him to police after receiving a poor quality home video showing child abuse material on his laptop screen.
‘Anyone who deals with child abuse material must have a mental problem… (The behaviour) is not straight and narrow. “This is about the sexual abuse of children abroad,” she stated.
“I can understand hypersexuality between adults, but I don’t understand it between adults and children.”
Magistrate Barko accepted that Corbett was entitled to a reduced sentence due to his guilty plea, noting that he was drunk at the time and that a medical report listed him as being at low risk of reoffending.
However, while taking into account the mental health arguments, Judge Barko said he was of the view that there was no appropriate punishment other than some form of prison.
He sentenced Corbett to 12 months to be served through intensive community correction, under a supervision plan imposed by the Community Corrections office.
Under the ruling, Corbett will be added to the national child protection registry as a convicted child sex offender.
During the proceedings, members of the public meeting could be seen shaking their heads in disgust as Magistrate Barko detailed the crime.
Corbett has since lodged an appeal against his conviction, which is scheduled to be heard in the District Court on August 15.