Northlander jailed for sexually abusing girl, blames Oranga Tamariki for placing child in his care

Shawn Bennett at his sentencing in Whangārei for sexual offending on a child in his care. Photo / Michael Cunningham

A remorseless Oranga Tamariki caregiver jailed for sexually abusing a girl under five has blamed the agency for placing the child in his care for so long.

The 59-year-old also believed that because the girl was so young, she would eventually get over it and move on.

Northland man Shawn Bennett, an Oranga Tamariki caregiver for up to 60 children over a 15-year period, was found guilty in June of eight charges including indecent assault on a female under 12, unlawful sexual connection and indecent act on a girl under 12 placed in his care.

Bennett was sentenced in the Whangārei District Court on Fridayto nine years’ imprisonment with a minimum non-parole period of four-and-a-half years.

Bennett and his wife of 32 years have had a long history with the Whangārei branch of Oranga Tamariki, and the Whangārei District Court heard Bennett took every opportunity to offend against his young victim whenever his wife left the house. The abuse was repeated and prolonged.

His offending came to light two months after the child was transitioned from his care by Oranga Tamariki and placed with whānau and she disclosed what was happening to her in front of students and a teacher.

That whānau placement broke down and the girl was moved to another home, where she confided in her new caregiver about the offending Bennett had inflicted on her.

When charges were first laid against Bennett, he told a report writer he wanted to plead guilty at the beginning but was advised by his wife and family to elect a trial as there was achance he would be found not guilty.

Bennett has had up to 60 children in his care, mostly aged under 5 years old. Photo / 123rf

Crown lawyer Richard Annandale said Bennett showed very little remorse and placed blame on the victim and Oranga Tamariki.

“He said, ‘Sometimes she asked for it because she liked the treats she got’.

“He has also blamed Oranga Tamariki for placing the child in his care when he advised them he didn’t want her for so long, and said ‘if they had listened to me, this would have never happened’,” Annandale said.

A victim impact statement submitted to the court said the child has ongoing issues of fear and insecurity, which are triggered every day.

“He believes the victim would be able to forget about what he did to her and move on because she was so young. Those comments grossly distort the true state of offending,” Annadale said.

A cultural report submitted to the court said Bennett had an unstable upbringing, childhood trauma and was also the victim of sexual offending.

However, Annandale submitted the report writer went too far by providing an opinion and does not have the background to make a link between Bennett’s history and what happened to the victim.

Judge Keith de Ridder agreed and said Bennett’s quote: “I was sexually abused by multiple people in my childhood”, was grossly overstated.

“It has to be looked at in context... I’m not sure there is any link between your childhood and your offending,” Judge de Ridder said.

Letters of support had been submitted by various people in support of Bennett, including a social worker, but Judge de Ridder said the premeditation of his offending, the gross breach of trust, harm to the victim, and scale of offending demonstrated his sentence should fall in the higher band.

“This was clearly premeditation. You were determined to offend against this victim whenever the opportunity presented itself,” the judge said.

“This offending happened when you were alone with her when your wife was at the shops, and you told her not to tell anyone what you were doing to her.

“She had come from some sort of troubled background and you were in a parental role to her. She was effectively a family member placed in your care by a State agency and you abused that trust over a sustained period of time in a most serious way,” Judge de Ridder said.

“To some extent, you are placing some of the blame on the victim and Oranga Tamariki. You consider she should be able to forget and move on.

“That is a complete and abject lack of understanding and you show no insight or remorse at all.”

Bennett was sentenced to nine years of imprisonment with a minimum non-parole period of four-and-a-half years.

Shannon Pitman is a Whangārei-based reporter for Open Justice covering courts in the Te Tai Tokerau region. She is of Ngāpuhi/Ngātiwai/Ngāti Pūkenga descent and has worked freelance in digital media for the past five years. She joined NZME in 2023.