Child protection campaigners have welcomed a harsher sentence for a man who molested a three-year-old at the Belconnen Library.
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The campaigners say the sexual assault by Shane Williams, 40 of Campbell, as he walked to a police station for his regular reporting requirements was a "heinous" attack on an innocent girl.
The young girl had come up to him in a friendly manner, after wandering away from her mother.
He was on bail, had five prior convictions for abusing children, and was drunk and on drugs.
Williams fled when the mother came looking for her daughter and later made a full admission to police.
He was originally sentenced in the ACT Supreme Court to 7½ years' imprisonment for the crime and an unrelated racist assault.
The court set a non-parole period of 4½ years, meaning Williams could potentially have been out in March 2018.
The sentence angered sections of the ACT community, including child protection campaigners Bravehearts and online group Canberra Mums, which called for a tougher penalty and better protections for children.
Prosecutors successfully appealed the sentence in the ACT Court of Appeal, and three years was added on Monday to Williams' minimum sentence.
He now faces a 9½ year maximum term with a non-parole period of 7½ years. Williams can now not be released until at least March 2021.
Bravehearts chief executive Hetty Johnston welcomed the result on Tuesday.
''Bravehearts applauds this decision by the courts to meet community expectations for a heinous crime against an innocent, defenceless child," she said.
"It's about time the courts took into consideration the rights and views of the victims and the community over that of the offender."
Canberra Mums welcomed the decision on its Facebook page, but said it strongly believes more could be done to protect children.
A petition with more than 13,000 signatures was handed to Chief Minister Katy Gallagher this year calling for tougher sentences for repeat child sex offenders.
In making its decision to increase Williams' sentence, the Court of Appeal found the original punishment to be manifestly inadequate.
It noted the gravity of the offence, Williams' poor prior record, the bleak prospects for his rehabilitation, his continual reoffending and the importance of protecting the community.
