Angela Phan, 31, approaches the ACT Courts to be sentenced on Thursday (18 September). Photo: Albert McKnight.
CONTENT WARNING: This article refers to sexual and child abuse.
A businesswoman who preyed on three of her employees, sexually or indecently abusing them even when two were still under 18, has been jailed.
Angela Phan was in her mid to late 20s when she repeatedly indecently abused the first girl, aged 15, had a sexual ‘relationship’ with the second, a 16-year-old girl, and indecently assaulted an adult woman.
She met all three of them as their employer after they started working for her. She mostly violated them at the Canberra business.
The now 31-year-old arrived late for her sentencing in the ACT Supreme Court on Thursday (18 September) before she was convicted and handed a total of five-and-a-half years’ jail with a three-and-a-half-year non-parole period.
Justice Belinda Baker said the offences caused profound harm to each of the victims and their families.
She said Phan exploited her victims’ vulnerabilities for her own selfish desires, isolating them from their families and manipulating them for her own gains.
The offences represented a significant breach of trust, and the judge noted the crimes against the first girl were particularly serious and were committed for Phan’s own sexual gratification.
Phan hired younger women at her business, encouraged them to discuss their sex lives with her and complimented their appearances.
She groomed the first girl online and in person, abused her every shift for a month by indecently touching her body and encouraged the girl to send her nude images when she was 16.
She started abusing the second girl soon after the first stopped contact with her. The criminal acts against this girl included oral and digital sexual assault.
The adult victim became concerned about Phan’s behaviour in the workplace before the latter indecently touched her body on two occasions. She was fired when she confronted the abuser about her behaviour.
When the first girl spoke to the court earlier this year, she said she and the other girls deserved justice for years of sexual, mental, emotional and verbal abuse.
“I can never go back. All I want is to go forward knowing predators, groomers and abusers always get what they deserve,” she said.
The second girl said Phan encouraged her to stop talking to her friends and would get upset when she spent too much time with her family, so she stopped seeing them.
“I was a kid when I met Angela and she used that against me. I feel less of a human being and more of a toy or game because of what she did,” she said.
Justice Baker said Phan, whose family migrated to Australia from Vietnam, minimised the extent of her offending and had not demonstrated remorse.
The author of a court report said she showed a concerning lack of insight into her offending, was unable to explain why child sex offences were criminal and portrayed the relationships she had with her victims as consensual.
Justice Baker didn’t accept that Phan’s risk of reoffending was low, partly due to the number of her victims.
Phan pleaded guilty to committing an act of indecency on a person under 16, grooming and using a carriage service to possess child abuse material over the first girl.
She also pleaded guilty to the persistent sexual abuse of a young person under special care over the second girl and committing an act of indecency over the adult survivor.
She will become eligible for parole in March 2029.
If this story has raised any concerns for you, 1800RESPECT, the national 24-hour sexual assault, family and domestic violence counselling line, can be contacted on 1800 737 732. Help and support are also available through the Canberra Rape Crisis Centre on 02 6247 2525, the Domestic Violence Crisis Service ACT 02 6280 0900, the Sexual Violence Legal Services on 6257 4377 and Lifeline on 13 11 14. In an emergency, call Triple Zero.
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