'Mother Goose' claims he was set up by gay ex-prostitutes

THE alleged paedophile known as "Mother Goose" claims he was set up by gay former prostitutes because he dobbed in sex offenders to police.

THE alleged paedophile known as "Mother Goose" claims he was set up by gay former prostitutes.

Robert William Symonds, 59, of Vale Park, appeared in the District Court yesterday.

He has pleaded not guilty to child sex offences including persistent sexual exploitation, gross indecency and unlawful sexual intercourse.

Opening the trial, prosecutor Mark Norman said the offences occurred in the 1980s and 1990s, when the boys - former wards of the state - were "prostituting themselves".

"Symonds claims their motive is to punish him because of the co-operation he has given to the police over the years . . . regarding the activities of various notorious paedophiles," he said.

"The idea is that the complainants have been persuaded to tell lies about him . . . to settle long-standing scores.

"The principal difficulty with that theory is that the complainants were approached by the police after they gave evidence to the Mullighan Inquiry, not the other way around."

He said Symonds had, "by his own admission", been part of Adelaide's gay scene for many years.

"His nickname, by which he appears to be well-known, is 'Mother Goose'," he said.

"It appears this is a reference to the way he walks."

He said Symonds had admitted "frequenting a number of notorious gay beats" around the city, including Veale Gardens and part of the River Torrens "next to the Jolley's Boat House". "Symonds has never had a permanent partner . . . he says his penis would be unattractive to a permanent partner," he said.

"It is indeed deformed and scarred, originally from a surgical procedure."

Mr Norman said Symonds' penis "figured significantly" in the case, with witness descriptions to follow. "Each complainant comes from a troubled background," he said.

"Each is damaged in their own way, and for a variety of reasons."

The trial, before Judge Peter Brebner and in the absence of a jury, continues.