WARNING: This story is about sexual offending and may be upsetting for some readers 

A woman who was sexually assaulted by an Auckland businessman says she lives in fear of him and wants him deported once he’s finished serving his 19-year prison sentence. 

Byron David Le Roux was recently sentenced in the Auckland District Court on 19 charges, the majority of which were for sexual and violent offending against three women. 

“No amount of time he spends incarcerated makes up for what he has done to me and his other victims,” one of his victims told NZME. 

“The verdict of the trial and sentencing validates our experience, but we have to continue to live with the ramifications, pain and suffering, of his abuse every day, for the rest of our lives. 

“What happened to me and the other victims never should have happened, but it did; there is no hidden message, lesson, or meaning in what happened, it was horrible, and hopefully he will continue to bear the consequences.” 

After a jury trial in July, the 42-year-old was found guilty of rape, sexual violation, unlawful sexual connection, impeding breathing and making intimate visual recordings. He was sentenced for those crimes, and for possessing heroin for supply that was found at his home after a police raid in February. . 

Le Roux, who knew his victims, raped one woman while she was trying to sleep. He twice forced another woman into anal sex and made derogatory remarks about her while she pleaded with him to stop. 

Without minimising the extent of his offending against the first two women, Judge Stephen Bonnar said during sentencing that the offending against the third victim was much more prolonged and extensive. 

Byron Le Roux described his lifestyle as lavish with large-scale taking and supply of drugs. 

In addition to eight charges of sexual violation by unlawful sexual connection, four of those being representative, Le Roux was found guilty of administering the third woman with LSD and making an intimate visual recording without her consent, suffocation and assault. 

In one incident, the woman awoke to find he had tied her arms and legs to a bedframe and a bedsheet had been placed over her head, as Le Roux sexually violated her. He had a camera set up in the room and recorded the activity and ignored her screams. 

Judge Bonnar said there were common features in all of the offending as the victims were younger women and less experienced than him. 

Trauma as a child, affluent lifestyle as an adult 

When police raided Le Roux’s home in Auckland they found three sets of digital scales, high-end jewellery and watches, 106 one-kilogram silver bars, a further six 10-ounce bars, one 20-ounce bar and one five-ounce bar. An air pistol and pellets were found in a camouflaged holster inside a padlocked bag in a vehicle parked at the address. 

Le Roux later described himself as a businessman living an affluent lifestyle, but denied using heroin and sexual offending. 

Judge Bonnar said self-entitled attitudes, a propensity for violence, sexual preoccupation, offending-related sexual arousal, poor self-control and antisocial attitudes were contributing factors to Le Roux’s offending. 

“You engaged in what can only be described as victim blaming. You claimed that the victims were trying to blackmail you and effectively, that they had colluded.” 

While noting there was no remorse and the continued denial of offending, Judge Bonnar said there was evidence Le Roux had suffered trauma during his youth in South Africa. 

Reports showed he was the victim of various aggravated robberies and had told report writers that he had shot and killed at least one person who attempted to rob him, while he “may indeed have shot another person while living in South Africa”. 

Le Roux told report writers there was “no right or wrong in South Africa, just grey”. 

He described guns being normalised and said he began selling drugs aged 17. 

“You describe the shooting and killing of an armed robber, the suggestion made by the report writers is that violence became increasingly normalised for you.” 

While post-traumatic stress disorder was an issue, there were significantly elevated test scores indicating narcissistic tendencies. 

Le Roux said he was reintroduced to the criminal underworld when he moved to Britain, becoming involved in the nightclub business, both using and selling cocaine. 

After moving to New Zealand, the lavish lifestyle continued with large-scale taking and supply of drugs. 

Judge Bonnar settled on a sentence of 19 years’ imprisonment with a minimum non-parole period of nine and a half years. 

‘I will live with fear every day’ 

But one of Le Roux’s victims fears what will happen when he’s eventually released from prison. 

“One day, his sentence will be finished, and he will be free to roam again. 

“I fear for the safety of the other women and myself, I want his residency revoked and want him deported back to South Africa, so that I do not continue to live in fear of his retribution. I want to feel safe in my country, if he is free to roam, I will live with fear every day.” 

She said there were not enough words in the dictionary to encapsulate the impact the experience had on her life. 

“The abuse inflicted on me has poisoned its way into every relationship and has stifled the natural progression in building my career. 

“Re-integrating myself back into society after being subjected to such evil has proven more difficult than I could ever imagine.” 

The woman said she had suffered sleep deprivation as a result of the abuse, something that had become “another form of torture, destabilising, and debilitating me”. 

“[After] the abuse, I spent hours every day locked away in my bedroom, which was the only place I felt safe; I woke up tired and could never seem to feel fully rested. I am still plagued by flashbacks, intrusive thoughts, and nightmares. 

“The pain had marked me in ways too deep for the naked eye to see, but most importantly, the pain had made my world very small. I was afraid to leave my own home.” 

She said she was unable to go to any supermarket, shop, or mall for a long time because her nervous system sent her into full panic overload. She also struggles in social group outings and doesn’t drink alcohol as she’s “on the lookout for who or what may hurt me”. 

The woman said she would live with the violation and uncertainty for her safety for the rest of her life. 

However, she is moving forward with the help of her friends and family. 

“I won’t let him determine the rest of my life. 

“It has been an incredibly difficult journey learning to trust people again; not everyone has your best intentions at heart, but furthermore, not everyone is out to hurt you. 

“This is a journey that can only be healed over time and through having, hopefully, good experiences after this turbulent journey. 

SEXUAL HARM 

Where to get help:
If it's an emergency and you feel that you or someone else is at risk, call 111.
If you've ever experienced sexual assault or abuse and need to talk to someone, contact Safe to Talk confidentially, any time 24/7:
• Call 0800 044 334
• Text 4334
• Email [email protected]
• For more info or to web chat visit safetotalk.nz
Alternatively contact your local police station - click here for a list.
If you have been sexually assaulted, remember it's not your fault.