Mark Kevin Swain: Geraldton police officer accused of touching and asking teenager for sex released on bail

A senior country cop who was already facing sanctions by WA Police for inappropriate conduct with underage girls – but kept his job — is now accused of indecently touching a 14-year-old girl he met through an app called Sugar Daddy Meet and asking her for sex, a court has heard. Mark Kevin Swain spent a night behind bars on Thursday before fronting Geraldton Magistrate’s Court facing three counts of encouraging a child under the age of 16 to engage in sexual behaviour, two counts each of indecent dealings with a child under the age of 16 and supplying juveniles with alcohol. State prosecutor Nick John told the court Mr Swain had been investigated in the past for inappropriate conduct with underage girls and currently had “occupational sanctions” for those allegations hanging over him. Despite this, it is alleged the police sergeant continued to use the apps and taken his alleged offending to the next level. The prosecutor said Mr Swain admitted to police that he had a “proclivity for younger women”, but denied knowing the two 14-year-old girls were underage, the court heard. The 48-year-old, who has been stood down from duty, is accused of offering to pay the girl to have sex with him after inviting her to his home and supplying her and another teenage girl with alcohol. He then allegedly paid $200 to one of the girls to keep quiet. The alleged victim came to Mr Swain’s Wandina home in Geraldton with a 14-year-old friend last week. The offences allegedly occurred while Mr Swain was off-duty on August 15 and 16. Mr Swain is alleged to have rubbed one of the girls’ thighs before inviting one of the them to his bedroom and offering her money to have sex with him which the girl did not. The police officer then gave the girls a ride to a local hotel, during which he allegedly inappropriately touched one of them. Later that night, Mr John told the court Mr Swain sent a message to the girl asking her to come back to the house, telling her he would “give her the best night of her life.” Mr John said Mr Swain allegedly paid one of the girls $200 to keep them quiet. Child abuse squad detectives arrested Mr Swain on Thursday. Mr Swain’s lawyer Gregory Chin said he did not deny meeting the 14-year-old girls at his home through the Sugar Daddy Meet site. However, Mr Chin said Mr Swain did not think the girls were underage as the terms and conditions of the app state you must be 18 and over. The court was told once Mr Swain found out how old the girls were he told them to leave the house. Mr Chin said Mr Swain later came across a Snapchat post from the girls asking for a lift back because it was raining. He said his client agreed to drop them off and nothing untoward happened during the trip. Mr Swain’s claims that he only paid the girls $200 after they threatened to tell his 17-year-old son, who is known to the alleged victims, about his father’s use of the dating app. In opposing bail, Mr John cited Mr Swain’s risk of reoffending if he continued to reach out to young women and interference with witnesses as his two primary concerns. The prosecutor also noted Mr Swain’s recent conviction for possessing a banned gel blaster and unlicensed ammunition. He was fined $800 in June. Mr John also told the court Mr Swain suffered from PTSD and depression, putting him at risk of self-harm. In arguing for bail Mr Chin highlighted the lengthy delays for trials and that it would be unjust to keep Mr Swain in custody for that period of time. He said the prosecution’s case was not an overwhelming one and there was nothing to suggest his client wouldn’t comply with his bail conditions. Magistrate Angus Hockton decided to grant Mr Swain bail, stating conditions could be put in place to reduce any risks. He said the charges were serious and would result in a term of immediate imprisonment if found guilty, but at the moment they were just allegations. Under Mr Swain’s bail conditions, he is banned from any child-related work, must surrender his passport, not leave WA, notify police of his internet devices and provide access to them, return his police uniform and is not to have unsupervised access to any children under the age of 16, excluding his daughter. Mr Swain must also not contact or attempt to contact the alleged victims and report to Geraldton police every Monday, Wednesday and Friday. He will reappear in court on September 29. A WA Police spokesman said the officer is currently going through disciplinary processes that may result in dismissal.