An Illawarra woman has been accused of filming herself raping her son under the request of a man she had been speaking with online.
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The 48-year-old childcare worker, who cannot be named to protect the child's identity, sobbed throughout her bail application at Wollongong Local Court on Wednesday.
She is charged with sexual intercourse with a child under 10, stemming from an alleged incident that took place between January 2021 and December 2022 in the Central Western region.
Police will allege the complainant, who was aged eight to nine at the time, disclosed the incident to the Illawarra Child Abuse Squad on Tuesday.
It's alleged the woman had been talking to a man named 'John' online and that he requested the woman send him a video of herself performing oral sex on her son.
Tendered court documents state the woman knelt in front of her son and raped him in this manner, filming the act on her iPhone.
Two days later, the video was allegedly found by the boy's sister. Police will allege the boy told his sister it was him in the video.
The boy allegedly told police "I really did not understand much" and that his mother "sucked my private part".
The woman was arrested at her Illawarra address about midday on Tuesday and allegedly told police "I don't understand, I have done nothing wrong".
Defence lawyer Sian Aldis argued for the woman's release, saying she suffers from major depressive disorder and doesn't have a prior criminal record.
Police prosecutor Sergeant Pavlin expressed concerns about the woman endangering the safety of her son. Sgt Pavlin added that investigations into whether the video of the alleged act is available are continuing.
"It does appear to be a very strong prosecution case," Sgt Pavlin said.
"That's not true, it's a lie," the woman said from the police holding cells.
The magistrate acknowledged the woman had no prior criminal history and opted to grant her bail under the conditions she report to police twice weekly, not contact or approach the complainant, and to not work with children.
"This is very serious, ma'am," Magistrate Claire Girotto said.
The woman will return to court in November.
- Support is available for those who may be distressed. Phone Lifeline 13 11 14; QLife 1300 555 727; Men's Referral Service 1300 776 491; Kids Helpline 1800 551 800; beyondblue 1300 224 636; 1800-RESPECT 1800 737 732.
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Grace Crivellaro
Court reporter for the Illawarra Mercury.
Court reporter for the Illawarra Mercury.
