Two young men who raped a woman in a caravan at a birthday party in regional Victoria have been jailed for their "opportunistic" crime.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Shaun Bloomfield and Luke Merryfull, both 24, previously denied they raped the woman and claimed the sex was consensual.
But a jury found Bloomfield guilty of two counts of rape and one count of sexual assault and Merryfull guilty of rape, following the attack at Balmoral in April 2016.
The woman had intended to sleep in the caravan, but the two rapists - both then 21 - climbed in bed on either side of her.
Merryfull suggested a threesome, but the woman "immediately, clearly" rejected sex of any kind with the men.
After Merryfull raped the woman, he got up and said to Bloomfield: "All yours now".
Merryfull claimed he was talking about the caravan, but that claim was rejected by County Court Judge Gerard Mullaly.
"These words are troubling as they are revealing of a concerning attitude towards the victim as merely an object for each of you, one after the other, to violate at your will," he told the court on Wednesday.
He added Bloomfield only stopped his assault when the victim pushed him in the chest, "forcing you to wake up to yourself".
Judge Mullaly told Bloomfield and Merryful that he did not believe the sex was consensual.
"Each of you knew that she was not consenting but you went ahead and penetrated her nonetheless," he said.
"In telling you "no", and "no way" ... this was not a case of you men generally believing she was consenting.
"Each of you knew she was not consenting but you went ahead believing or hoping nothing would come of it all."
Judge Mullaly said after the attack, the victim was in "considerable distress".
"She was entitled to feel safe in that environment and to be sexually violated by two men who she trusted, is a grave thing," he said.
"She has moved interstate and finds it difficult to return to her family in the small town in which she lived."
Judge Mullaly said the gravity of the crimes was high.
"The victim was a friend who trusted you to understand that she did not want to have sex with either of you," he said.
The court heard the victim had suffered long depressive episodes throughout 2015.
"She found it difficult to eat or leave the house," Judge Mullaly said.
"She has seen a psychologist fortnightly for three years, and this will continue in the foreseeable future."
Merryfull was jailed for four years and 10 months and must serve two years and 10 months before being eligible for parole.
Bloomfield was jailed for five years and eight months, with a minimum term of three years and four months.
with Australian Associated Press