Popular Australian author pleads guilty over child exploitation material

Popular Australian author Craig Silvey has pleaded guilty to charges of possessing and distributing child exploitation material. The 43-year-old author, known for books like "Jasper Jones" and "Runt," admitted to two charges in court on Tuesday, following his arrest in January at his Perth home. Police seized electronic devices during the raid, and two additional charges were dropped. Silvey's bail was continued, with his next court appearance scheduled for July. His books have been removed from shelves by publishers, shops, and schools following his arrest.

Australian author Craig Silvey, known for his novel *Jasper Jones*, has pleaded guilty to two charges of possessing and distributing child exploitation material. The offences occurred in January. Two other charges, including one alleging he produced child exploitation material, were dropped by prosecutors. Silvey, 43, entered his guilty pleas in Fremantle Magistrates Court on Tuesday. He was initially charged in January following a police raid on his Fremantle home. Silvey's bail was continued, and he is scheduled for sentencing in the district court on July 3. Publishers had previously ceased promoting his work and removed his books from reading lists following the initial charges.

Lauren Ashley Mastrosa, 34, has been convicted of three child abuse material offenses for writing a novel titled "Daddy's Little Toy" under the pen name Tori Woods. The book, published online in March 2025 and read by 21 advance readers, depicts an 18-year-old woman role-playing as a toddler with an older man. Mastrosa was sentenced at Blacktown local court in western Sydney to an 18-month community corrections order and placed on the child protection register for eight years. The judge acknowledged Mastrosa's cooperation but emphasized the severity of the content and the need for general deterrence. Her defense argued she intended to write an erotic book, not child abuse material.