A teenager raped by a rugby player in her Canberra apartment now constantly fears for the safety of all women, saying her attacker made her feel like a "weak, useless and unloved" sexual object.
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A powerful statement from the woman was read to the ACT Supreme Court on Wednesday, when rapist Ropati Dominic Finau was sentenced to nine months of full-time imprisonment.
The woman said that after being attacked by Finau, she turned into a different person and "ran away from God".
She said her body suddenly felt like a toy for others to use.
"I was weak, useless and unloved," the woman said in her statement.
"I felt like my own identity was my sexual exploitation."
The woman, who was just 18 at the time of the 2018 incident, said she still felt scared.
She worried that even smiling at a stranger might lead to an unwanted sexual advance that she could not refuse.
She said she was concerned for women she saw out in public, constantly wondering whether they were safe with their male companions.
In the aftermath of the rape, the woman moved because she no longer felt safe in her apartment.
Finau, 26, was found guilty last month of raping the woman in a November 2018 incident.
The pair knew each other through brief work interactions, and bumped into each other on a night out in Civic.
They went to several bars and kissed, but the woman made it clear that she wanted to dance and have fun rather than get too intimate.
Finau eventually told her "we're going now" and the pair shared a cab. They agreed the driver would drop the woman off at her apartment, then take Finau home to Queanbeyan.
But when the taxi arrived at the woman's apartment, Finau insisted on going in to use the toilet and have a glass of water because he felt sick from drinking.
Once inside, he pinned the woman to a sofa bed as she repeatedly told him she did not want to have sex and to "get off me".
The woman pushed against Finau's windpipe and slapped him in attempts to break free.
But Finau, who weighed nearly twice as much as the woman, told her, "I want this, I'm here", and hit her in the face.
He proceeded to rape the woman, only stopping when her "terrifying" cat jumped up and interrupted.
Dozens of people supporting Finau packed the public gallery when he was sentenced on Wednesday.
His sister-in-law, Alexandra Madden, told the court Finau financially supported family in Australia and Samoa.
She said she knew him to be respectful and thoughtful towards everyone, including several of her friends who she said continued to hold Finau "in high regard" after intimate encounters with him.
Finau's cousin, Ofu Michelle Maiava, said he was like a brother to her, and had provided crucial support during a time of grief.
She said he was heavily involved with a Samoan Methodist church, where he had taught Sunday school classes.
A retired schoolteacher and former Queanbeyan Whites president, Phillip Hawke, told the court Finau often helped newly arrived Pacific Islanders find a sense of belonging in the rugby club.
Mr Hawke said he had read Chief Justice Helen Murrell's judgment following Finau's judge-alone trial, and "it's not the person I know".
Finau's barrister, Margaret Jones, said these character references showed the significant support around Finau and his "excellent" prospects for rehabilitation.
She said the court should find Finau's crime was opportunistic rather than premeditated.
Ms Jones urged Chief Justice Murrell to consider imposing an intensive correction order, which is a jail sentence served in the community.
But Crown prosecutor Patrick Dixon pushed for full-time imprisonment, saying there was "nothing exceptional" about a person who worked, went to church, played rugby, and had a family.
He said the people attesting to Finau's character were "silent as to the way he deals with females behind closed doors".
Mr Dixon said the victim was entitled to feel safe in her home, but Finau took that away by using his superior strength to rape her in a violent and serious crime that involved some level of premeditation.
Chief Justice Murrell found there was no evidence of premeditated rape, but said it seemed as though Finau had hoped to have consensual sex before going ahead without the victim's consent.
The judge noted that Finau continued to claim the sex was consensual, saying Finau had no doubt found it difficult to accept "his dramatic fall from grace".
She said Finau was "of otherwise impeccable character", and agreed with Ms Jones about his prospects for rehabilitation.
Chief Justice Murrell found an intensive correction order would not recognise the seriousness of the crime, but a partially suspended jail sentence was appropriate considering factors like the impact of COVID-19 restrictions on the rights of prisoners.
She jailed Finau for two-and-a-half years, but ordered that the sentence be suspended and a good behaviour order imposed after Finau has served nine months behind bars.
Having already served one month, Finau will be released in March 2021.