The wife of a gang rapist who attacked three teenagers at a money party has said she forgives her husband after he dismissed his vile sex crimes as ‘infidelity’.
Maurice Hawell, 30, was sentenced to 14 years in prison last week after being found guilty of raping three women at his own money party in February 2022.
Hawell’s best friend Andrew David, 30, was jailed for 13 years and brother Marius Hawell, 23, for nine years for sexual abuse which the judge called “humiliating and horrific”.
But Maurice Hawell’s wife Loubna, 29, had begged the judge for leniency in one of the letters of support sent to the court ahead of Friday’s sentencing.
Mrs Hawell begged that her rape groom not be separated from their young child – refusing to even admit he raped his three victims, simply calling it ‘disloyalty’.
“The discovery of Maurice’s infidelity was very painful for me and went against the values at the heart of our relationship,” she wrote: News.com.au reports this.
‘Despite the infidelity, I chose to forgive Maurice for this mistake because I realized it was a rift in our relationship, but not a reflection of his entire character.’
Court documents revealed the couple married in April 2022. Hawell was charged in May of that year and tried in June 2024.
Maurice Hawell (left) gang raped three women. He is depicted with his wife Loubna
In her letter, Mrs. Hawell said the moment police arrived at their home with a search warrant detailing the allegations against her husband, a few weeks after the wedding, was “like being hit by a bolt of lightning.”
She wrote that she was “completely shocked” by the allegations against her attorney husband and said she believes his story of innocence.
“And while I was heartbroken when I discovered Maurice’s infidelity, I never, not for a moment believed that he would be capable of the monstrous acts described in those papers,” she said.
‘Maurice is the epitome of respect, humility and generosity. He treats everyone with the utmost dignity and respect.”
Hawell, from Bossley Park, pleaded not guilty to all charges at the trial and argued that any sexual activity he had during the money trip to Newcastle was consensual.
Documents filed on his behalf before sentencing say he maintains his innocence and would appeal the sentences.
His wife begged Judge Gina O’Rourke for leniency in her letter to the court, saying the “thought of life without Maurice is a heartbreaking pain that I can hardly bear.”
“We hope that Your Honor can take into account the serious consequences of Maurice’s prolonged incarceration for (our family),” she wrote.
Hawell’s brother Marius Hawell was jailed for his role in the sexual attacks.
Three women testified during the trial that they were invited to an Airbnb where the Hawell brothers, David and others stayed before they were sexually assaulted by multiple men in a dark bedroom.
The incidents took place over two nights the friends from Sydney stayed in Newcastle, with a jury finding two women were raped on the first night and another on the second.
Judge O’Rourke criticized the Hawells and David’s action as being “in stark contrast to how their mothers, wives, girlfriends and sisters have described them.”
“They are three highly educated, intelligent, successful, professional young men who come from loving Christian homes and who treat their own sisters, mothers and female partners with respect and love,” she said.
“And yet this weekend they were able to use a pack mentality to treat three young women in this cold, insensitive, demeaning and criminal manner.”
Judge O’Rourke said one of the women, all teenagers at the time, was treated as “an object… and not as a young female person who deserved to be treated with dignity.”
The Hawells and David all maintain their innocence and plan to appeal.
Loubna and Maurice Hawell outside a Sydney court earlier this year.
Majdolin Hawell, the mother of Maurice and Marius, wrote in her letter to the court that she felt compelled to “speak the truth” about her sons – “extremely responsible young men, known for their good character and upright behavior.”
“While I respect the jury’s verdict, the trial and the court’s time, it is extremely difficult to reconcile the charges with the character of Maurice and Marius,” she wrote.
“They have always had the utmost respect for women, whether in their past or present relationships, their friends, their colleagues or even me and their sisters.”
Judge O’Brien imposed minimum sentences of eight and a half years for Maurice and five years and five months for Marius, meaning they will be eligible for parole in January 2033 and December 2029 respectively.