Minister tells of 'living hell'

A minister's life became "a living hell" when she was sexually molested by the prison inmate she tried to help, the Christchurch District Court has been told.

The woman's Christian beliefs led her to meet George Darren Cant, 38, through the prison visitors scheme and she invited him to live with her family, believing she could help him live a good life on the outside.

But he is accused of cynically manipulating her compassion to the point where she was left suicidal and thinking the "cold, ruthless and brutal" sexual assault that occurred was all her own fault.

Cant denies charges of assault with intent to commit rape, unlawful sexual connection, and indecent assault for the alleged events on two occasions several years ago. He claims the woman, a married church minister with several children, consented to their contact.

The woman did not appear in court and her evidence was given in a statement.

She met Cant in prison but even after she stopped working through the prison visitors' scheme, she kept visiting him because he asked her to. However, while still in jail, she had to talk to him about his "inappropriate contact" with her.

When he was released from prison she and her husband said he could stay with them until he found suitable accommodation.

"Shortly after he left prison, I was visited by a uniformed police officer and as a result I was led to believe that Cant could be a threat to me. At that time, I thought it was unlikely."

However, she said Cant became "manipulative, abusive, and intimidating", at one point picking up knives and threatening suicide. About a month after his release from prison, she alleges he sexually attacked her.

"I kept trying to pull his hands off but he seemed to be all hands ... He was so strong."

It was only after several years that she was able to tell pastors from another branch of her church what had happened. That led to the police being informed and Cant being charged.

Cant did not dispute there was sufficient evidence to put him on trial and was remanded in custody to a hearing in the High Court at Christchurch next month.

- NZPA