Police suspect paedophile network in Anglican Church, South Australia

[David Virtue]

Police suspect paedophile network in Anglican Church, South Australia

The Courier Mail

A NETWORK of paedophiles appeared to have operated from within the
Anglican Church, South Australian police commissioner Mal Hyde said
today.

Police today set up a paedophile task force to investigate child sex
allegations within the Anglican Church in SA.Commissioner Hyde said the
task force was established after he was contacted by Adelaide
Archbishop Ian George about 65 child sex abuse complaints. The
complaints named 17 different offenders, he said.

"Quite clearly, with the number of complaints that we've got and the
indication of a very significant number of offenders, or possible
offenders, it would suggest there is a (paedophile) network, to some
degree, involved," Commissioner Hyde told reporters today.

He said investigations by the task force would be far reaching
and include complaints of abuse that allegedly occurred before 1982.

The State government announced it would introduce legislation on
Wednesday to remove immunity from prosecution of sex offenders that
occurred before December 1982. Under current SA laws, sex offences
committed before then cannot be prosecuted owing to a statutory
limitation."The government's move will enable police to pursue
allegations of child abuse beyond those within the Anglican Church,"

SA Attorney-General Michael Atkinson said.Commissioner Hyde said he did
not yet have specific information about the complaints, such as the age
and sex of alleged victims. The complaints were received through an
independent hotline established by the church.

Three detectives and an analyst have initially been assigned to the
task force, to be headed by Chief Inspector Grant Stevens.However, more
police officers would be assigned as required, Commissioner Hyde
said."(The task force) initially will have the task of scoping it (the
complaints) out to identify how much we do have to follow through on
and to identify the extent of the allegations," he said."I expect it to
be ongoing and to have quite a deal of inquiries to make."

Archbishop George contacted police on Wednesday night, a week after two
Adelaide clergymen called for a public inquiry into the allegations,
saying they had information the alleged abuse involved a number of
parishes had occurred over almost four decades. The Reverend Dr Donald
Owers and the Reverend Andrew King said the number of alleged victims
was between 30 and more than 200. Archbishop George last night
apologised to boys sexually abused by former church worker Robert
Brandenburg and said the diocese was ashamed at its lack of compassion.

He repeated the apology in an advertisement in the Adelaide Advertiser
today and said: "I want to publicly acknowledge the hurt that has been
done to a large number of people, the individuals whom Brandenburg
abused and their families who are living with the
consequences."Brandenburg was found drowned soon after being charged by
police with sexual offences in 1999.Mr Atkinson said he did not know
how many alleged sex abuse victims would come forward once the immunity
from prosecution was removed.

END