Nicole Woods has pleaded guilty to sexually abusing a school student. Photo / Supplied
Nicole Woods has pleaded guilty to sexually abusing a school student. Photo / Supplied
An Australian teacher's aide who had been drinking and taking meth when she raped a 15-year-old boy claimed to have a "special bond" with her victim, who told a court he had been left "numb" and "broken" by the abuse.
Nicole Woods is awaiting sentencing for the assaults, which occurredat Staughton College in Melbourne in 2016.
Melbourne's County Court has heard how Woods was hired by the school to help visually impaired students, working from a "pod" at the rear of one of the school's classrooms.
It was from this pod that she lured the boy with food and promises of repairs for his mobile phone, before eventually sending him a message on Facebook asking him to "come play with her" in the private area.
What followed was six months of sexual abuse that left her victim profoundly damaged and Woods with charges of sexually penetrating a child under the age of 16.
"Dark days, anger pain, can't sleep properly, sleep with a knife, cutting myself," he said.
ABC reports that prosecutor Craig McConaghy told the court her actions were a "gross betrayal of trust".
"From the offender's perspective there was a close bond … a special bond between her and the victim," he said.
Woods' lawyer Jonathan Barrera said his client was at a "dark time" when the offending occurred, having left an abusive relationship and become dependent on methamphetamine.
The court heard Woods told a psychiatrist that she had a "snap of the brain".
But the judge questioned Woods' credibility because she did not enter a guilty plea until directly before the trail.
"He [the victim] lived under the belief that your client is denying the allegations right up until the day he was to give evidence," Judge George Georgiou said to Barrera.
