Abusive teacher 'will never teach again' says education dept

The teacher was continuing to teach up until the time he was arrested in March, 2015.

UPDATE 4.30PM: THE Department of Education has confirmed the former Fraser Coast teacher found guilty of molesting his step-son will never teach again.

The now 45-year-old man was found guilty of nine charges relating to years of reported sexual abuse he inflicted on his step-son.

The step-son was only a child when the abuse started in 1999, but charges were not pressed against the teacher until early 2015.

The man was teaching up until he was arrested.

A department spokeswoman told the Chronicle the DETE took "immediate action" to suspend the man once it was notified of the charges, and his registration to teach would "never" be renewed again".

"There is no higher priority for the Department of Education and Training than the safety and wellbeing of students," the spokeswoman said.

"The person's registration lapsed whilst on suspension, and the person will never be eligible for registration again.

"The person is no longer an employee of the Department."

The Department of Education didn't answer the Chronicle's question as to whether they had received complaints against the teacher prior to his arrest. 

EARLIER: A HERVEY Bay District Court trial has revealed a former teacher was working at a local school at the same time he was subjecting his step-son to "sexual abuse of the most appalling kind".

The man faced 16 charges - including maintaining a sexual relationship with a child, indecent treatment of a child under 16, under 12, and sodomy - in a week-long trial.

The former teacher's step-son made allegations that he had been molested between 1999 and 2006, from before he was even a teenager.

(It is) sexual abuse of the most appalling kind...

- Justice John Robertson

The Hervey Bay District Courtroom heard the teacher, now 45, emotionally manipulated his step-son, turning the boy into a submissive victim which allowed him to continue offending until the step-son moved out of home after he turned 18.

The step-son did not report his mistreatment to police until 2012, when he was 24, and did not make an official statement until early 2015.

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The teacher was continuing to teach up until the time he was arrested in March, 2015.

The Chronicle cannot name the teacher because it would identify his victim.

The defence barrister, Don MacKenzie, highlighted the lengthy delay between the time of the offending, and when it was reported to police.

The barrister said between 2006 and 2008, the step-son had been focused on "cars, jobs, study and a girlfriend" and went on to have a fine career in the military.

"Is that consistent with a young man being abused?" Mr MacKenzie questioned.   "It is simply a word verse word case."

Crown Prosecutor Josh Hanna said it had taken the victim many years to build up the strength to talk about what had happened to him.

"It's obvious that children are particularly vulnerable when in an adult's care; being in a position of trust and care of an adult means the offending can go on for some time," Mr Hanna said.

"[The step-son] is now a capable, confident man, not a 10-year-old boy that was vulnerable to the accused.   "Not an 18-year-old who couldn't even look adults in the eye and had [the defendant] talk for him… he is now able to talk about the many sexual offences against him."

After deliberating for more than eight hours, the jury was only able to reach a verdict on 9 of the 16 charges.

The former teacher was found guilty of maintaining a sexual relationship with a child, indecent treatment of a child under 16 and sodomy, with the other counts discharged by the judge.

As the jury read out their verdict, the defendant's new partner and mother wept in the back of the courtroom.

While handing down his sentence, Justice John Robertson said the man had committed "sexual abuse of the most appalling kind".

"Your offending was brazen and escalated in seriousness from when you were able to alienate him [the step-son] from his own family," Justice Robertson said.

"You have shown absolutely no remorse."

While talking about the victim, Justice Robertson said the young man had shown true resilience "in the face of such odds".

"The effect on him has been catastrophic…[yet] he has gone on to achieve at an extremely high level of service to his country."

The man was sentenced to 10 years imprisonment, as well as being registered as a sex offender.

The court heard that since hearing of the proceedings, the caravan park where the former teacher had been living on the Sunshine Coast had asked him to relocate.

Police, meanwhile, said they were checking to make sure there were no other victims.