A young woman said she was left feeling "uncertain, unsafe and violated" after a serial thief broke into her ANU student dormitory, sexually assaulted her and threatened to come back and rape her.
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Paul David Kelly, 39, of Curtin, faced an ACT Supreme Court sentencing hearing on Monday after pleading guilty to multiple theft and burglary charges and one count of an act of indecency without consent.
In September last year, during a three day bender on the drug ice, Kelly broke into an ANU residential college where he stole numerous items including four laptops, a jumper and a trumpet.
He then broke into the woman's room while she slept and she awoke to him standing over her wearing a ski mask while he was rubbing her breasts.
She fought Kelly off, preventing him from also stealing her laptop. Prior to fleeing Kelly threatened to rape the woman and also said "I will come back and get you".
The woman took the stand on Monday to read her victim impact statement, indicating she wanted to address Kelly "not from a position of vulnerability but from a position of strength, resilience and courage".
She told the court how she had moved to Canberra alone to study at the ANU but that Kelly's attack had left her paranoid and spiraling back into depression.
"Every sound in the darkness of night was the sound of danger in my mind," she said.
"Your threats to rape me and come back for me echoed in my head. Life became about survival."
The woman described how she began to withdraw from social circles, quit her job and deferred her studies as she attempted to deal with the trauma caused by the attack.
She said she could not sleep properly for weeks afterwards and also stopped eating. Having to sleep in the same bed where Kelly had assaulted her was like "suffocating in a coffin", she said.
Addressing Kelly directly, the woman was defiant while saying that while he may have robbed her of certain things that morning, he never took her strength and resilience.
"I was your victim on that morning," she said.
"I refuse to be your victim forever."
Kelly later took the stand and informed the court his offending was a direct response to his methamphetamine abuse and since being incarcerated had undertaken every course he could to help address his addiction.
He said he had previously remained drug free from almost five years prior to early 2019, but being evicted and losing his job had caused him to relapse.
He admitted to doing all of the things with which he was accused and accepted responsibility for his actions, but said he recalled very little of what happened due to his methamphetamine use.
His drug use turned him into a monster, he said, saying he reached "a point of no return" where he lost all rationality.
"I felt instant shame and as much as I can't change that, I can change myself and not let anything like that happen again," Kelly said.
"It's just been enough. I'm over hurting people."
He said he felt very sorry for the woman and wrote her a letter in response to her victim impact statement.
Defence barrister Jane Campbell said Kelly was "barely recognisable" now compared with the man who had assaulted the victim almost a year ago.
She said he was not making excuses for his offending and there was very significant evidence before the court of Kelly's genuine attempts at rehabilitation.
Ms Campbell said her client dreamed of living a drug-free life and once released from prison wanted to begin a stonemasonry business.
Prosecutor Skye Jerome said Kelly had an unenviable criminal history and that elements of his actions were premeditated and brazen.
Justice Chrissa Loukas-Karlsson said Kelly's attack on the woman was "very clearly a great violation" and that a sentence of imprisonment was unavoidable.
She will hand down her sentence in October.
