CRICKETER HELD ON CHILD ABUSE VIDEOS
FORMER Big Bash League player Aaron Summers will face the Northern Territory Supreme Court next month on child grooming charges.
The former Hobart Hurricanes and Tasmania fast bowler was arrested in Fannie Bay in May but could not be publicly named until his case was committed for trial in the Darwin Local Court on Tuesday afternoon.
At the time of his arrest, Joint Anti-Child Exploitation Team detectives said police would allege the 25-yearold’s mobile phone contained child abuse material and further evidence suggested he had been in contact with up to 10 children in an attempt to procure further illicit photographs.
During a bail application shortly after his arrest, Commonwealth prosecutor Angela Liantzakis told the court police had interviewed one of Summers’ alleged victims while officers were still “tracking down” up to another six.
“On his mobile phone in the favourites folder there are a number of child abuse videos, some of which were recorded on the Snapchat application live with the victims and then they were saved and stored in the gallery of his phone,” she said.
“There’s at least two child victims that are located in Darwin and there’s been child abuse material of those victims found on the defendant’s phone.”
At the time, then defence lawyer Clement Ng requested a bail assessment report, saying any risk to the community could be mitigated by electronic monitoring and a cash surety from Summers’ mother.
“Perhaps some conditions by way of restricting access to a device or any device, that might be necessary and proportionate to address the risk,” he said.
But in refusing bail, judge Alan Woodcock said there were no conditions the court could impose that would mitigate the risk to the alleged victims if he were released.
Summers remains in custody in Darwin and will now face the Supreme Court for a call-over on October 7.