A man who kidnapped a four-year-old girl and held her captive for 18 days has been sentenced to more than 13 years in prison.
Terence Kelly, 37, who pleaded guilty, abducted a sleeping Cleo Smith from a remote campsite in western Australia on 16 October 2021.
He drove Cleo 47 miles to his house where he kept her locked in a bedroom.
She was rescued on 3 November after an extensive search led by police. The four-year-old was playing with dolls in the locked room when she was found.
The case captured the world’s attention, especially after a video of the moment Cleo was found spread on social media.
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Kelly will be eligible for parole in 11 years and six months.
Imposing the sentence on Wednesday, Judge Julie Wager noted Kelly’s own troubled upbringing but said his risk of reoffending was high according to the advice of psychiatric experts.
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“You pose a high risk of seriously psychologically harming any future victim in the event that you did reoffend,” she said.
A psychiatrist consulted in the case said Kelly suffered from a severe personality disorder arising from childhood neglect.
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This led him to create a “fantasy world” with the existence of multiple imaginary children by different women.
Kelly is a member of Australia‘s indigenous, or Aboriginal community, which was mentioned by the judge when imposing the sentence.
“Sadly, in western Australia, many Aboriginal people have suffered the adverse impacts of colonisation,” Judge Wager said.
“I fully accept that you’re one of them and I accept that you’ve turned to drug misuse because of the pain and trauma that you’ve suffered throughout your life.”
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Aboriginal people track below Australian national averages on most socioeconomic measures and suffer disproportionately high rates of suicide, domestic violence and imprisonment.
Their life expectancy is about eight years lower than non-indigenous people.
