A south-western Sydney man who would make a six-hour round trip on public transport to carry on an illegal sexual relationship with a Wollongong girl will learn his fate on Wednesday.
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Evangelos Nussis's lengthy communications with the girl began on the online video game Fortnite in March 2020, when he was 27 and she was 14.
He claimed their first sexual encounter, on the sand at Wollongong's City Beach on June 6, 2020, was "spontaneous" and the result of the "very strong feelings" he had developed for the girl, who was by then 15.
"I wouldn't say I forgot [about her being underage], but emotionally I was very attached to just the comfort, and just knowing that the person I'd been speaking to [online] was her" Nussis told Wollongong District Court on Tuesday.
Now 30, Nussis has pleaded guilty to seven charges of sexual intercourse with a child age 14-16, though some details of the offending remain in dispute.
On Tuesday the Crown accused Nussis of trying to minimise his crimes with claims he wore a condom on all but that first sexual encounter, and with claims he only ever ejaculated externally.
These claims are contrary to the girl's evidence.
The court heard the teen had endured some "significant events" in her life, and that Nussis became a confidante - conduct that amounted to grooming.
The crimes took place in a secluded spot on City Beach and - one time - in a room at City Beach Hotel.
Nussis' bail was revoked on January 18, after he pleaded guilty to the offences in Wollongong Local Court.
On Tuesday Nussis's barrister Phillip Butterfield called for some leniency in sentencing, citing "special circumstances" including Nussis' first-time prisoner status, his need for a lengthy period of supervision in the community and need for interaction with psychological treatment for conditions including depression.
Nussis gave evidence of his "quite severe" introduction to prison life, where he spent nine days in quarantine without medication or his CPAP machine, and only a single meal a day. He told the court he was surrounded by 20 inmates soon after arriving, and that he narrowly escaped being bashed after the men questioned him about his offending until he admitted he was accused of sex crimes.
He claimed a prison officer soon afterwards took him to a room and hit him about the head with a bag of rope while asking repeatedly, "are you a sex pest?".
"After I kind of broke and said, 'I'm not a sex pest, but it involved a 15-year-old girl at the time', he smacked me again and called me a few names which I do not ... repeat. Afterwards he put me back to my cell and I had to refer to him as boss. All the inmates knew why I was there."
Among the circumstances Judge Alistar Abadee will consider are whether Nussis forged a connection with the girl "deliberately, with a view to engage in underage sex".
The Crown points to a message exchange between the two to show Nussis' early understanding that what he was doing was wrong.
In the exchange, the girl tells Nussis about a 15-year-old peer who was having a relationship with an adult.
"I can't talk LOL," was Nussis' reply.
"But do you plan on sleeping with me while I'm underage?" the girl asked.
"No."
The matter returns to court on Wednesday for sentencing.
Angela Thompson
Proudly Illawarra Mercury since 2008; these days covering crime and justice issues. UOW alum. Thrilled by the chase and sobered by some of the things I see and hear when I stand still - sometimes in the same day. ang.thompson@austcommunitymedia.com.au
Proudly Illawarra Mercury since 2008; these days covering crime and justice issues. UOW alum. Thrilled by the chase and sobered by some of the things I see and hear when I stand still - sometimes in the same day. ang.thompson@austcommunitymedia.com.au
