‘Depraved’ teacher wants jail term slashed: court

A former music teacher jailed after police uncovered depraved child abuse fantasies shared with his boyfriend and three others is seeking to have his sentence slashed, a court has been told.

Lawyers acting for Benjamin Heels, 35, appeared in Victoria’s Court of Appeal on Monday to argue his 11-year sentence should be reduced “by years”.

Heels and his long-term boyfriend Tristan Cullinan-Smayle, 35, were jailed in March last year after pleading guilty to a combined total of 51 sexual offences.

Handing down her sentence, Judge Helen Syme said Heels had “capitulated” to Cullinan-Smayle’s sexual interest in children, but was excited by the “taboo” nature.

Working as a music teacher and musical theatre director at venues across Melbourne’s southeast, in 2021 Heels began writing “extreme” fiction detailing abuse fantasies about children he knew, sharing them over an encrypted messenger with Cullinan-Smayle and three other people before their arrest in May.

These would include non-sexual images of the children taken from social media, with 19 known victims aged between two months and 14-years-old.

Heels also took photos of two piano students and filmed himself masturbating in the room without their knowledge.

In court, Heels barrister Morgan Brown argued his 11-year sentence on 28 charges was “manifestly excessive” when compared with similar cases.

She told Justices Phillip Priest and Richard Niall it was conceded the only appropriate sentence was imprisonment, labelling the material Heels produced “depraved, concerning and disgusting”.

“What the applicant is saying is so reprehensible, it’s difficult for a person to feel sympathy for him,” she said.

But Ms Brown argued Judge Syme had erred by handing down a sentence that was not appropriate by “a number of years”.

“When one considers the overall offending, the conclusion is the total effective sentence is grossly too long,” she said.

“If there is to be a reduction, Your Honours ought consider a sentence significantly shorter than what was imposed in the first instance.”

She said the written child abuse material did not involve the actual abuse of children, and his conduct towards the two piano students should have resulted in shorter sentences for each charge.

Counsel for the Director of Public Prosecutions, Ruth Champion, conceded the individual sentences were “stern” but said the total effective sentence was “appropriate and proportionate”.

She argued the text-based material featured “extreme” depictions of abuse and were sent to three others, not just Cullinan-Smayle.

Ms Champion agreed the individual sentences imposed on two charges fell outside the permissible range, which Justice Priest said “probably reopens the sentencing discretion”.

Heels was sentenced to a term of 11 years on 28 charges including; transmitting child abuse material, sexual activity in the presence of a child and sexual assault of a child under 16, and will be eligible for parole after seven years and three months.

Cullinan-Smayle was jailed for 10 years on 23 charges including; trying to procure sexual activity with children under the age of 16 and transmitting sexual abuse material, and will be eligible for parole after serving six years and seven months.

Both men were placed on the sex offender register for life.

Justices Priest and Niall adjourned the appeal for judgment at a later date.