Overview
- After three days of deliberations, a NSW Supreme Court jury found the former Liberal MP not guilty on eight charges and could not reach verdicts on two others, leading to the jury’s discharge.
- Prosecutors have not announced if they will pursue a retrial on the deadlocked counts, and Amon remains on bail for those unresolved charges.
- The case centers on alleged encounters in June and July 2017 with a 13-year-old met via adults-only dating apps; the hung counts relate to the first alleged meeting, while the acquittals cover allegations from an alleged second meeting Amon denies occurred.
- Amon acknowledged one sexual encounter but said he believed the teen was 17, as the Crown argued he should have recognized the complainant was under 16 based on what he saw in person.
- The complainant disclosed aspects of the events in 2017, identified Amon from a council photo in 2020, made a formal police report in 2022, and Amon’s subsequent arrest and prosecution ended his political career with expulsion from the Liberal Party and resignation.