logo
Police to examine erotic novel Daddy's Little Toy following child abuse material charges

Police to examine erotic novel Daddy's Little Toy following child abuse material charges

News.com.au7 days ago

A 10-page synopsis of erotic fictional novel Daddy's Little Toy is being examined by police after a Sydney author was charged with child abuse material offences following the book's publication.
Lauren Tesolin-Mastrosa, 33, who publishes under the pen name 'Tori Woods', was charged over the content in the novel that allegedly depicts a relationship between a man and his friend's 18-year-old daughter.
The book allegedly makes references to a character fantasising about the woman since she was three years old.
The Christian marketing executive has been charged with three offences – possess child abuse material, disseminate child abuse material and produce child abuse material.
She has pleaded not guilty and was not required to appear in Blacktown Local Court on Thursday when her matter was briefly mentioned.
The prosecution told magistrate Bree Chisholm that they required a six-week adjournment in order for police to examine a '10-page synopsis' of the book.
'It contains detailed descriptions of what was contained in the book,' the prosecution said.
'Further mention is required in order to consider the appropriateness of the matter including the charges.
'I can indicate the book will be required to be accessed in order for that to occur.'
Meanwhile, the author's solicitor Mickaela Mate requested a bail variation for Ms Tesolin-Mastrosa to reduce her police reporting from one day a week to three given she has 'strong ties to the community'.
Ms Chisholm replied that these were 'serious charges'; however, said she would grant the bail variation.
When asked outside court how her client was doing, Ms Mate replied: 'She's great.'
In April, the author lost a bid to suppress any publication of her name, book title and other details about the case.
Ms Mate argued in court that threats had been made online against Ms Tesolin-Mastrosa and her family.
The book created an online furore earlier in the year after excerpts of prerelease copies were published online.
The author was formally charged in March, and police executed a search warrant at her western Sydney home.
She continues to deny the allegations, earlier stating in a post to social media that the charges were a 'huge misunderstanding'.
'DLT is definitely not promoting or inciting anything ever to do with (child sexual abuse) or pedophilia,' she wrote.
'What is being said is grossly disturbing and breaks my heart as well as makes me sick.'
She will next appear in court on July 17.

Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Three arrested after bullets fired into Merrylands home, Porsche found ablaze
Three arrested after bullets fired into Merrylands home, Porsche found ablaze

ABC News

time20 minutes ago

  • ABC News

Three arrested after bullets fired into Merrylands home, Porsche found ablaze

Three people have been arrested after bullets were fired into a house in Sydney's west on Thursday. NSW Police said no-one was in the Merrylands home at the time shortly after 9am and no-one was injured. A short time later, a Porsche was found ablaze in the neighbouring suburb of Chester Hill. Police said the three people left in a Hyundai before being arrested in Yagoona while trying to flee officers. Sources have told the ABC the house is linked to Alameddine crime network figure Ali Elmoubayed. Mr Elmoubayed appeared in Parramatta Local Court a short time after the attack. Taskforce Falcon, which was formulated last month to investigate and suppress violent crime in the Sydney metropolitan area, is investigating the shooting. The taskforce was formed in the wake of Sydney underworld figure Dawood Zakaria being fatally shot while his car was stopped at traffic lights on a busy Granville street. Taskforce Falcon will consist of more than 150 officers and draw help from the New South Wales Crime Commission in a bid to put pressure on feuding organised crime networks. It will absorb investigations currently underway as part of 13 different underworld based strike forces and will be led by Criminal Groups Squad Commander Jason Box.

Corruption watchdog clears Brittany Higgins's $2.4 million payout
Corruption watchdog clears Brittany Higgins's $2.4 million payout

ABC News

time21 minutes ago

  • ABC News

Corruption watchdog clears Brittany Higgins's $2.4 million payout

The national anti-corruption body has cleared a settlement paid by the federal government to former Liberal staffer Brittany Higgins over corruption claims. Ms Higgins received a $2.4 million payout from the Commonwealth in 2022 as it sought to settle a compensation claim. The former staffer had alleged she was not adequately supported by her then-boss, Liberal senator Linda Reynolds, after she made allegations she was raped at Parliament House. Multiple figures had called for the National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC) to investigate the compensation payout, including former opposition leader Peter Dutton and Senator Reynolds. Mr Dutton had accused government figures of "duplicity" and "trickery" in organising the government settlement. "I think there are very serious, very serious allegations here. There's a multi-million-dollar payout," he said in mid-2023. Senator Reynolds had reportedly highlighted concerns about the speed of the mediation process and her exclusion from attending mediation. The NACC on Thursday said an "extensive preliminary investigation" found no evidence of corruption. "There is no evidence that the settlement process, including the legal advice provided, who was present at the mediation, or the amount, was subject to any improper influence by any Commonwealth public official," the statement read. "To the contrary, the evidence obtained reflected a process that was based on independent external legal advice, without any inappropriate intervention by any minister of either government. "There is therefore no corruption issue." The anti-corruption body said it made multiple "notices to produce" to various departments and lawyers, and analysed thousands of documents relating to the settlement. It found the initial legal advice on a settlement was provided to the Morrison government before the 2022 election. Advice later obtained by the Albanese government was "not materially different" and there was no difference in the approach taken by either government towards pursuing a settlement. The NACC also took no issue with the mediation conference lasting less than a day, finding that was not unusual given the substantial work done in the lead-up to mediation and efforts to "[avoid] ongoing trauma to Ms Higgins". It also found the $2.4 million settlement amount was "less than the maximum amount recommended by the external independent legal advice".

NSW auditor-general Bola Oyetunji warns NSW failing to reduce harm from gaming machines
NSW auditor-general Bola Oyetunji warns NSW failing to reduce harm from gaming machines

News.com.au

time31 minutes ago

  • News.com.au

NSW auditor-general Bola Oyetunji warns NSW failing to reduce harm from gaming machines

The NSW government is failing to reduce harm from the pervasive gaming machines that fill out the state's pubs and clubs, a troubling new report has found, with punters losing a massive pot of $8.4bn in just one year. Auditor-general Bola Oyetunji's Regulation of Gaming Machines report, released on Thursday morning, also reveals that the number of gaming machines across the state has increased in the past two years despite an explicit legislative push to reduce the number of machines. 'NSW had 87,749 gaming machines in operation in clubs and hotels at June 2024,' the report states. 'This means the total number of machines operating in clubs and hotels could increase by almost 8000 and remain within the current legislative cap. 'The total number of gaming machines operating in clubs and hotels has increased in each of the last two financial years by a total of 958 machines.' The push to reduce the number of machines comes from the passage of the Gaming Machines Act in 2001. At that time, there were more than 100,000 machines in operation. Despite the fall to about 88,000 machines today, NSW continues to far outstrip other jurisdictions in the number on offer to punters and the decline rate is slow at about 598 machines per year. 'At this rate, it will take more than 55 years for NSW to reach parity with the national average for gaming machines per 1000 adults,' the report states. In 2023-24, the machines generated $8.4bn in profit for pubs and clubs, with the patron losses 'disproportionately concentrated' in lower socio-economic areas in Greater Sydney. The Independent Liquor and Gaming Authority and the Department of Creative Industries, Tourism, Hospitality and Sport are responsible for regulating machines, and the auditor-general found the agencies were failing to effectively support 'harm minimisation' outcomes. 'The department's strategy for regulating gaming machines is not based on a clear understanding of current levels of gambling harm and it does not set any targets for reducing harm associated with gaming machines,' the report states. 'The department does not have benchmarks, targets or other performance measures in place to assess outcomes against key measures of harm minimisation. 'There have been no evaluations of its compliance programs to measure their impact on harm minimisation outcomes. 'As a result, the department does not know whether its regulatory strategy is effective in minimising gambling harm.' In one example, the auditor-general found regulators had not conducted 'frequent inspections' of regional venues. 'The majority of gaming machines and gaming machine losses are in the Greater Sydney region but there is also a high risk of gambling harm in some regional and rural areas,' the report states. The state has 12 inspectors, all of whom are based in Greater Sydney. Gambling harm levels were not falling, the report also stressed. 'For example, calls to the GambleAware Helpline increased by 8.5 per cent in 2023-24 and gaming machine losses have increased in each of the last three years,' the report states. 'The results of the 2024 NSW Gambling Survey did not indicate a reduction in the level of gambling harm in NSW.' The auditor-general recommends several changes to improve compliance and reduce harm, setting a June 2026 deadline for the government. For the department, the report recommends 'establishing baselines and targets' for gambling harm minimisation. It also calls for a review into the state's gaming machine forfeiture scheme to ensure it is achieving the legislative objective of reducing the number of machines in the state. The scheme requires the compulsory forfeiture of some gaming machine entitlements when they are transferred between venues. For the Liquor and Gaming Authority, the auditor-general recommends it begin periodic reviews of licence conditions for venues that host machines in the highest risk locations to make sure they align with gambling harm minimisation.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into the world of global news and events? Download our app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store