John William Hardy guilty of nine charges against young boys, not guilty of five other charges

A recidivist offender who had already been jailed for abusing 24 boys in NSW moved to Kangaroo Island where he continued his abuse. Now he will finally face justice.

A Kangaroo Island man has been found guilty of multiple counts of abusing children on the island.

But in court on Thursday, John William Hardy, 71, was acquitted of the most serious charge levelled against him – maintaining an unlawful sexual relationship with a child.

Looking noticeably frailer than in previous photos and with crutches at his side, Hardy listened to the verdicts without expression.

Almost two dozen police officers and detectives packed the court to hear the verdicts.

District Court Judge Paul Cuthbertson found Hardy guilty of five counts of indecent assault and four counts of aggravated indecent assault.

He was acquitted of a further count of indecent assault, three counts of aggravated indecent assault and maintaining an unlawful sexual relationship with a child.

The offences spanned between 2002 and 2019, when the seven victims were aged between six and 14 years old.

The Advertiser is prohibited from publishing further details of the offending to avoid identifying the victims.

During the trial the court heard that Hardy was a recidivist sexual predator who had been jailed for crimes against 24 boys in New South Wales.

John William Hardy has been convicted of nine counts of abuse of children on Kangaroo Island between 2002 and 2019. Picture: Supplied

Prosecutor Patrick Hill said Hardy had admitted to and was convicted of offending against boys in Maclean, NSW, more than a decade before the Kangaroo Island allegations.

Mr Hill said a 1991 interview with NSW Police would be presented as evidence in the trial.

“It’s understood there were a total of 24 boys involved as alleged victims in that investigation, and (NSW Police) will say that the accused admitted the allegations in relation to all of them,” he said.

The court heard between 1988 and 1991 Hardy would invite local boys over to his caravan, where he would sexually abuse them.

On Thursday, Judge Cuthbertson noted even more offending against young children in NSW.

He said Hardy had been jailed for 12 months for four counts of acts of indecency in Grafton.

Hardy’s lawyer asked for her client to appear via video link from Mount Gambier Prison for sentencing submissions.

However, Mr Hill objected, saying that it would be appropriate for Hardy to face his victims in person if they chose to read impact statements to the court.