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Offender Databases Paul Bridgeman

Paul John Bridgeman

Alias

.

Offences

Repeated sexual violation of a girl under 12 from 1995 to February 2001

Victims

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Offender Affiliations

.

Gang affiliations

none known

Age

Born 1973

Current Location

Unknown

Parole/Release Dates

Sentenced to 4 years 6 months in March 2004

Background
From Waikato Times story 3rd March 2004
A Hamilton labourer has been jailed for four and-a-half years for sexually assaulting a young girl twice in five years. Paul John Bridgeman, 31, was sentenced yesterday in Hamilton District Court after a jury earlier found him guilty on two charges of sexual violation. The court was told Bridgeman had a limited intellectual capacity, suffered from depression and was abused as a child.

Crown prosecutor Deborah Davies said the first assault occurred when the girl was four or five, after he had cornered her in a bathroom and locked the door. On the second occasion, when the girl was about 10 years old, he crept into her bedroom and assaulted her while she was in bed. Ms Davies sought a sentence of five to six years saying the girl, who now harbours a fear of males, was vulnerable because of her age. It was also concerning that Bridgeman had targeted the same complainant, despite a five to six year gap.

Bridgeman's lawyer, Gordon Matenga, said his client's upbringing had been characterised by instability and abuse as he was thrust between his father's house and boys' homes. When he was eight, his mother, who suffered from manic depression, committed suicide. Judge Robert Wolff said a starting point of four years was appropriate, but given the mitigating factors were outweighed by the aggravating factors of the case he increased the sentence by six months.

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Corrections and Additional Information
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