A Dandenong physiotherapist who initiated sex with a vulnerable NDIS client has been jailed.
Ryan Nugara, 35, pleaded guilty at the Victorian County Court to a rolled-up charge of five acts of sexual penetration of a person with mental illness.
Nugara was hired for weekly physio and therapeutic massages in the victim’s home to relieve her neck tension.
He was aware that his 41-year-old client was on an NDIS package and diagnosed with PTSD with dissociative amnesia, judge Kevin Doyle noted in sentencing on 12 September.
The victim, a disability pensioner undergoing treatment for ongoing childhood trauma and stress, had recently been discharged from hospital when Nugara was hired.
Nugara had “exploited” their power imbalance and deliberately crossed professional boundaries, Judge Doyle said.
In the lead-up, he had been complimenting the patient on her soft skin, booking her in for his last appointment of the day, offering to walk her dog, and exchanging messages about his personal life.
In September 2022, he asked her out for a drink. At a café, he drank five wines and she felt “funny” after three ‘Bonnie and Clydes’.
Nugara drove her home and said he was too drunk to drive further. He asked if he could stay at her place for a while, and she made him a cup of tea.
He initiated sex, in which the victim said she felt “powerless” and triggered due to past traumas.
Afterwards, he consoled her but said she could now only contact him in business hours. Previously he said she could call any time day or night.
He later sent her flowers with a note saying “sorry you feel this way”, that he was also struggling and didn’t want to lose her.
One afternoon, Nugara turned up to her house despite her cancelling their appointment.
She was semi-conscious in the bathroom due to an overdose.
He called triple-0 and lied to authorities that he’d rejected her sexual advances, she’d broken down and was suicidal.
The victim was taken to The Alfred hospital for assessment. She later disclosed the incident to police.
As a result, Nugara has been suspended as a physiotherapist, as well being banned for two years as an NDIS service provider.
At the time of sentencing, he was working night-shifts at Woolworths.
Judge Doyle noted that the offence was designed to protect vulnerable people from exploitation and the risks of enduring mental-health impacts – which was what occurred in this case.
In a victim impact statement, she said that any therapeutic progress was destroyed in his “gross abuse of power”.
The worst aspect was it happened in her own home – the only place she had felt secure, she stated.
She no longer trusted health care professionals, even though she needed them more than ever.
Nugara, who said his marriage was under strain at the time, had expressed genuine remorse, Judge Doyle said.
Also in mitigation, Nugara had no prior convictions, supportive references, very good rehabilitation prospects and undertaken 30 sessions of behavioural therapy.
Judge Doyle accepted that imprisonment would cause further mental health issues for Nugara.
But due to the seriousness of the offence and the need to deter others, he must serve jail.
Nugara was jailed for six months followed by a 12-month supervised community correction order with mental health treatment.
