Samantha Azzopardi was spared jail for claiming she was victimised and sexually assaulted. Photo / NCA NewsWire
Samantha Azzopardi was spared jail for claiming she was victimised and sexually assaulted. Photo / NCA NewsWire
A serial con artist who claimed she was in a cult and sexually assaulted shook and became teary in court before her sentence.
Samantha Azzopardi was ordered in the Picton Local Court on Wednesday to serve a three-year community corrections order.
The 33-year-old pleaded guilty to two counts of making false reports late last year under the alias Emily Bamberger – the name of a young Californian woman.
"This court has to determine whether the offender in this particular case was impacted by the condition she was living with or is she just a liar … who disrupts the community to a great extent," magistrate Mark Douglass told the New South Wales court.
He said the crimes were "serious and significant" offences.
"They can cause a drain on resources and cost of thousands and thousands of dollars in relation to investigation," Douglass said.
As part of her sentence, Azzopardi must take part in mental health assessment and treatment. She was warned that if she breached the conditions she would be brought back to court.
Douglas accepted that Azzopardi lived with a mental illness but said she had the "capacity to commit serious offences".
"I don't often say this but Ms Azzopardi you should thank [your lawyer] Ms Sheils," Douglass said.
"She's been a real trooper and had your best interests all the way through."
Before the hearing, Azzopardi was asked if she was nervous about the case but refused to answer questions.
Inside court the Douglas Park resident appeared to hyperventilate, shook, looked teary and her lawyer Carolyn Shiels comforted her as she was led into a separate part of the building.
Azzopardi was charged after she contacted a youth worker in November 2021 and claimed she was a teenager in a cult.
She claimed her parents sent her from Brisbane to a man who sexually assaulted her, took photos and held her captive.
Azzopardi was told she should thank her lawyer Carolyn Shiels (right). Photo / NCA NewsWire
When the youth worker called the Child Protection Helpline, it prompted a police investigation, according to court documents.
The police arranged with the worker to meet Azzopardi, who claimed to be a 16-year-old girl, but she got cold feet.
A week later, she went to the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital and told a doctor that she was the victim of a sexual assault.
According to court documents, Azzopardi claimed she was injected with a fertility drug against her wishes, but she fled the hospital before she could be examined.
