Five more years for 'sexual predator'
By Kim Arlington
A "CALCULATING sexual predator" who posed as a
police officer before raping a Sydney girl will spend another five years in
jail, after his sentence was today increased on appeal.
Mark Anthony Reyes, 42, was originally jailed for a minimum 10 years after
sexually assaulting two teenagers in the space of a week.
But the New South Wales Court of Criminal Appeal today ordered him to serve up
to 18 years behind bars, agreeing with the Crown that the sentence was
inadequate.
The court was told Reyes held his first victim captive for almost a day, raping
her eight times and forcing her to dress up in provocative clothing.
He kidnapped the 18-year-old from a Liverpool street at knifepoint on April 29,
2003, injecting her with amphetamines four times during her 20-hour ordeal.
Reyes took the woman to his nearby home, at Eagle Vale in Sydney's south-west,
forcing her to wear a see-through bodysuit and gold hot pants.
He then cut off her clothes, handcuffed and blindfolded her and stroked her with
knife, warning: "If you don't do everything I tell you, then I'm going to stab
you."
Other assaults took place at a construction site and an abandoned house
frequented by drug users, while Reyes also forced his victim to shower with him
at a truck stop.
Reyes made her wear a school uniform during one assault and only cut short
another assault, in nearby bushland, after he was bothered by mosquitoes.
He struck again just a week later, approaching a 16-year-old girl outside
Liverpool railway station.
Posing as an undercover policeman to lure her into his car, Reyes handcuffed and
blindfolded the girl, threatening to slit her throat if she screamed.
He then drove the victim home, sexually assaulting her before robbing her unit.
Reyes, a Chilean immigrant, was convicted in Campbelltown District Court of 22
charges, including aggravated sexual assault, kidnapping and administering a
stupefying drug.
The father of three, who served in the Australian army, was also found guilty of
indecent assault after shaving the pubic hair of both victims.
The Crown appealed against the inadequacy of the sentence after Judge Brian
Maguire jailed Reyes last December for 13 years, with a 10-year non-parole
period.
Justices Michael Grove, James Wood and Clifton Hoeben found the sentence was
manifestly inadequate and would not effectively deter anyone contemplating a
similar offence.
Justice Grove said Reyes' criminality was grave, and endorsed Judge Maguire's
finding "that he is a calculating sexual predator upon young women".
The appeal judges increased Reyes' maximum jail term to 18 years, ordering him
to serve at least 15 years in jail.
A drug user since the age of 13 who now has Parkinson's disease, Reyes has never
shown remorse for his crimes.
He will be eligible for parole in 2018.
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