A co-owner of a Christchurch gay venue has been convicted of a charge of receiving commercial sexual services from a person aged sixteen. Whilst in general the legal age of consent for sex between consenting people in New Zealand is sixteen, the Prostitution Reform Act sets the age limit for legal prostitution at eighteen. During the case text messages were shown to the court detailing the negotiations which took place before Nicholas (Nikora) Kayne Nitro had sex with the sixteen-year old. Payment included cash, cigarettes, clothing, and a mobile phone top-up. In sentencing Nitro today to 275 hours of community service and a payment of $2,000 to the victim for emotional harm, Judge Raoul Neave acknowledged the young man engaged in the arrangement willingly, "but it turns out he was motivated by need given the financial circumstances of his family and is now deeply ashamed of his behaviour which has distanced him from his family and friends.” He said Nitro, who is a co-owner of the Closet cruise club, was the adult in the situation and should have acted responsibly. “Offending which involves exploitation of young people whose judgment is not yet fully formed has to be regarded as serious,” he said. The judge has suppressed any reporting of how the pair met. Further detail is available through the Court News website link below. You can discuss this New Zealand gay community news story in the GayNZ.com Forum.
Credit: GayNZ.com Daily News staff
First published: Tuesday, 28th February 2012 - 7:32pm