A 12-year-old girl who was "married" in an Islamic ceremony in her family's Hunter Valley home fell pregnant but miscarried, a court has heard.
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The girl, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was examined at the Children's Hospital at Westmead after she complained of sharp right abdominal pain. Doctors found she had an ectopic pregnancy - where the fertilised egg implants outside the uterus - and miscarried.
The now 13-year-old's pregnancy was revealed in a statement of facts tendered to the NSW District Court during a sentencing hearing for a 27-year-old Lebanese university student, who also cannot be named for legal reasons.
In October last year the man pleaded guilty to one count of persistent sexual abuse of a child.
The charge carries a maximum penalty of 25 years jail. The man's student visa has been cancelled and he is being detained in Villawood Immigration Detention Centre.
The court was told the man arrived in Australia in June 2013 and first saw the girl at a Hunter Valley mosque in November 2013. He made inquiries about marrying her but after a supervised meeting he was told she was not interested as he was "too old".
However, the man began contacting her by text message, sometimes sending dozens of messages a day. About a month later the girl began communicating with him.
The court heard the imams from the girl's family's mosque had told the man any marriage would be illegal and they would not assist. However, Sheikh Muhammad Tasawar, an Iranian cleric based at a different mosque, agreed to "marry" the couple. The ceremony took place in Arabic in a private home on January 12, 2014.
After the ceremony the couple had sexual relations and continued to do so while staying in a series of motels before moving into a rented house in western Sydney.
The girl would remain at home each day as the man went to work or university.
In early February 2014, the man attempted to become her guardian so he could enrol her in high school. They were referred to Centrelink and Family and Community Services. Police were alerted and following an investigation the man was charged with 25 counts of sexual intercourse with a child aged between 10 and 14. The charges have since been rolled into one charge of persistent sexual abuse of a child.
After his arrest the girl was examined at hospital. The ectopic pregnancy was discovered a week later.
The man will be sentenced at a later date.
In March 2014 Tasawar, 35, plea to the offence of solemnisation of a marriage by an unauthorised person. He was fined $500 and his Religious Leaders visa was cancelled.
