A former senior Australian diplomat and World Bank consultant has been charged with sexually abusing two 7-year-old girls and an 8-year-old boy at his apartment in Washington DC.
Thomas Austin Mahony, 43, was arrested in July and will face court again next month on two charges of first-degree child sexual abuse, and one charge of second-degree child sexual abuse over incidents that allegedly occurred between February 2023 and July 2025.
Mahony, whose wife has since returned to her native Japan with their three sons, worked as First Secretary for the Australian Embassy before moving on to the World Bank, and volunteered as a photographer at children’s swimming teams in the DC area.
He has been held without bond due to community safety concerns, with a Superior Court of District Columbia Judge stating in late July that although the court also had flight risk concerns, the detention decision was made “solely on dangerousness grounds”.
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According to documents filed in Mahony’s case, the first 7-year-old girl, CM, reported to police that the ex-diplomat kissed her on the vagina while she was on the toilet during a play date at his home in February 2023.
An arrest warrant was issued and a civil protection order was taken out against Mahony, but the US Attorney’s office declined to prosecute due to “consideration of the government’s burden of beyond a reasonable doubt”.
Then in July this year the parents of the second two alleged victims reported more sexual abuse allegations concerning their children, a 7-year-old girl referred to as EV in court documents and an 8-year-old boy referred to as Et.
EV told police that Mahony touched and licked her vagina on numerous occasions, and her brother told police Mahony rubbed his penis over his clothing while he played video games in Mahony’s son’s bedroom.
Their mother, whose children were friends with Mahony’s around the same age, later told The Washington Post that she trusted Mahony and now feels like she “failed as a mother”.
“I told my husband if there is a family we can trust, it must be this family,” she said, adding that he was once considered a “hero of the community”.
The families were friends and lived in the same apartment building.
DFAT said it was aware of the arrest of an Australian citizen and would provide consular assistance if requires, but “does not tolerate the exploitation, abuse, or harm of children and has robust child protection policies in place”.
A spokesperson for the World Bank, which dismissed Mahony after his arrest, said: “The World Bank has zero tolerance for sexual exploitation. Our staff rules do not permit us to comment on personnel matters.”
Mahony graduated from ANU with a degree in Asian Studies and Economics, worked for the Australian Treasury, and in 2014 was a delegate for the Australia-China Youth Dialogue while working as a North Asian analyst for the Australian Government.
He faces a maximum penalty of life imprisonment if indicted by a Grand Jury and found guilty.
Left, right, Thomas Austin Mahoney.
