A woman forced to work as a slave has recalled the "extreme pain" of being forced to sexually service up to 10 customers a day to pay back a $45,000 debt.
The woman spoke of the impact of Rungnapha Kanbut's crimes after the slave owner was found guilty on six charges, including intentionally possessing a slave and exercising powers of ownership over a slave.
In April, a jury needed less than five hours to find Kanbut guilty on all charges at a retrial, after an appeal quashed her 2019 convictions over the same allegations.
She was accused of keeping two Thai women as slaves for about six months after they came to Australia to live with her 20 years ago.
One of the women, who cannot be named for legal reasons, had a victim impact statement read at Sydney's Downing Centre District Court on Friday.
She said her "heart was broken" due to the "number of clients I was made to service and the debt I would need to repay".
"Prior to coming to Australia, I did this work on my own terms," she said.
"In Thailand I was free to choose if I service the customer or not, and the number of customers I had per day whilst under debt.
"(But under Kanbut) I was made to have up to 10 customers a day and continue to work when I was menstruating."
She now "can't even walk without extreme pain for several days" when menstruating and had been told by doctors she requires surgery, the woman told Kanbut's sentence hearing.
Kanbut was more than three years into an eight-year jail sentence when her convictions were quashed.
The maximum penalty for the slavery offences is 25 years imprisonment.
The slaves faced repeated threats and felt they had no choice but to stay and pay back their debts, the court was told.
Defence counsel submitted Kanbut had a "particularly deprived" background, although Judge James Bennett took issue with the characterisation, suggesting it was a similar position to those who had been enslaved.
"She's been caught in the web as much as they have," Judge Bennett said.
"But she's ended up in a management position while they've been workers.
"I've had worse (slavery cases), but it's still an awful thing for these girls to be brought into this country to service individuals who want to make use of this service."
Kanbut will be sentenced on Monday.
An estimated 42,000 people in Australia live under modern slavery conditions, including debt bondage.
More than 50 survivors received support from the NSW Anti-Slavery Commissioner in the 2024 financial year.
1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732)
National Sexual Abuse and Redress Support Service 1800 211 028
