Stewart Iain Berry pleaded guilty to three-year allegations of child-sex abuse

A top Corrections officer has admitted to sexually abusing a teenage boy, and secretly filming other children with his husband. And he’s been allowed to remain on bail.

Another pedophile syndicate member has admitted to the vile sex abuse of a teenager, and secretly filming other children with his husband.

Stewart Iain Berry, 39, was due to stand trial in the District Court on Tuesday on multiple child sex charges but the court heard the matter had resolved.

Berry pleaded guilty to four counts to replace the 14 counts initially laid by prosecution.

The court heard Berry produced child exploitation material, knowing the victims were under the age of 14, between December 2015 and December 2018 at Salisbury Park.

Berry produced child exploitation material again between December 2015 and November 2017.

Stewart Iain Berry pleaded guilty to multiple child sex offences on Tuesday. Picture: NCA NewsWire/Naomi Jellicoe

He also pleaded guilty to sexually abusing a child between November 2017 and November 2020, by performing sexual acts on him and inciting or procuring him to commit an indecent act, which included sending Berry naked photos and videos.

Finally, Berry possessed child exploitation material in Port Lincoln in March 2021.

Berry’s husband, Mathew Campbell, 39, pleaded guilty earlier this month to two counts of producing child exploitation material.

Berry was arrested in March 2021 as part of an investigation into the online child exploitation syndicate run by HIV+ child sex predator, Jadd William Brooker.

He and former SA Labor adviser Benjamin John Waters were arrested by SA’s elite child-rescuing police team, the Joint Anti Child Exploitation Team.

Berry’s arrest led JACET detectives to Campbell.

Waters pleaded guilty to accessing, transmitting and possessing child abuse material, while Brooker pleaded guilty to 182 crimes against children and teenagers nationally and around the world.

Correctional services officer Stewart Iain Berry, left, and his husband Mathew Campbell, right, on their wedding day. Picture: Supplied.

Patrick Mulvihill, prosecuting, asked the court to revoke Berry’s bail, saying he presented a legitimate risk to the community and it was serious offending.

“It entails, in short the grooming and sexual abuse of a teenage boy over a period of years,” he said.

Mr Mulvihill said the offending also involved the “surreptitious” filming of four teenage boys, with Berry procuring sexualised images and videos of one of the victims through Snapchat.

Alex Rice, for Berry, opposed the application, saying his client had been on home detention bail for over two years, with no breaches.

Mr Rice told the court Berry was a senior officer in the Department of Corrections at Port Lincoln prison at the time of his arrest.

He said a number of reports would be sought to determine what could be done to alleviate the “exceptional hardship” upon Berry’s incarceration.

“Those checks, and reports and assessments should be done prior to this man being taken into custody,” Mr Rice said.

“The Department of Correctional Services owes this man a duty of care … (and) their ability to keep him in custody safely away from other prisoners that might do him harm.”

Mr Mulvihill said Berry was facing an “inevitable” lengthy term of imprisonment and there was no good reason it shouldn’t start immediately.

Judge Jane Schammer allowed Berry to remain on bail and adjourned his and Campbell’s charges to link up next month.