Former teacher, footy scout and uni lecturer Bevan Charles Wilson jailed for abusing teen student

A former footy scout, teacher and uni lecturer has been jailed for persistently abusing a student who he groomed via the use of his canteen card.

A former teacher and footy scout who preyed upon a student at an inner suburbs high school for more than a year – asking him to do odd jobs around the school in exchange for use of his canteen card – has been jailed.

Bevan Charles Wilson, 71, persistently abused a teenage boy in the 1990s and befriended the child’s mother to gain further access to the boy.

In sentencing, Judge Jane Schammer said Wilson’s crime was “very serious” and a “gross breach of trust”, which had an “enormous effect” on the now-adult abuse survivor, including hampering his future footballing dreams.

She said Wilson arranged for the student – who he never taught – to complete tasks for him, in exchange for using his card at the school canteen.

“You groomed (the student) – a boy growing up in disadvantaged circumstances who did not have a father figure and befriended his mother in order to satisfy your own sexual desires,” she said.

Bevin Wilson from Facebook.

Convicted child sex offender Bevan Charles Wilson outside the District Court. Picture: Sean Fewster.

“You subjected (the student) to sustained sexual abuse on a regular basis.

“You grossly breached the significant trust placed in you by them both.”

At trial, the court heard Wilson, also known as Bevin, had a “Bill Cosby” air to him – painting himself as a “number-one dad” figure around the school he taught.

The victim identified Wilson by two distinct physical characteristics – a birthmark on his chest and his abnormally small penis.

Bevin Wilson.

Bevan Wilson, a former teacher, has been found guilty of abusing a student. Picture: Facebook

In a victim impact statement, the student described being a “sex slave” to Wilson, who had torn his life “to shreds and pieces, just like you did to my mind and my body”.

“You were, and still are, a monster – a vicious and scary one,” he said.

Judge Schammer said the abuse led the victim to begin experimenting with drugs at an early age to numb his pain and “in the process failed to reach his potential as a footballer”.

She said the victim had attacked Wilson in 2009 – injuring him with a knife and punching him – before reporting Wilson’s abuse to police years later.

The court has previously heard Wilson was a SANFL junior football scout and a lecturer at Flinders University – who was known for his flamboyant outfits.

At a hearing in September, the court heard he was living at a tourist park in Gawler which was frequented by children and young families breach of his bail conditions.

At that hearing, Judge Schammer revoked Wilson’s bail and he has remained in custody since.

On Wednesday, she said Wilson denied his offending and had shown no contrition or remorse.

She jailed him for 12 years and set a six-year non-parole period due to his advancing Parkinson’s disease – a degenerative disease of the brain which affects cognitive function.

Judge Schammer also told the victim she hoped he could now move on with his life.

“I very much hope that he can now move on with his life so that he can pursue and achieve his personal goals,” she said.