Principal ‘helped students with homework, abused them’

A SYDNEY assistant school principal — charged with 90 child sex abuse offences allegedly groomed many of his male students by instructing them to sit with him behind a desk at the back of the classroom, according to court documents.

Former assistant school principal Shane Matthews has been charged with a host of sexual abuse charges, in relation to students.

A SYDNEY assistant school principal — charged with 90 child sex abuse offences allegedly groomed many of his male students by instructing them to sit with him behind a desk at the back of the classroom, according to court documents.

Police will allege that Shane Andrew Matthews would often help his young students — aged between 10 and 12 — with their school work while he indecently assaulted them or encouraged them to commit sexual acts on themselves during lessons at Wattle Grove Public School in Sydney’s west.

The court documents state that Matthews asked many of his young male victims: “Are you okay with this?” before or while he was committing acts of indecency on them.

Matthews allegedly asked his victims “are you okay with this?”.

Assistant principal Shane Matthews who regularly dressed as “Captain Obvious” has been charged with sexual abuse of students.

The Daily Telegraph earlier revealed that police had charged the 30-year-old teacher with a string of offences relating to the sexual abuse of 15 students and one relative over the past decade.

The former Wollongong University student allegedly groomed his victims by dressing up as a self-styled “super hero” character called Captain Obvious — and he allegedly often bribed victims to commit and receive sexual acts by giving them fake cash they could use in classroom auctions to buy Smiggles stationary.

Wattle Grove Public School, where some of the alleged attacks occurred.

It is also alleged that the Year 5 and 6 teacher assumed the online pseudonym of a 15-year-old girl and in one instance allegedly befriended one of his young male victims through Facebook and convinced him to send naked images of himself.

In other instances, Matthews would allegedly befriend the parents of his victims and convince them that their children needed private tutoring — during which it is alleged the sexual abuse would escalate.

Matthews was first arrested at his Bradbury home in September 2016 in relation to allegedly grooming and indecently assaulting three students. But in the months after his arrest, more than a dozen other alleged victims came forward and gave statements to the NSW Police Child Abuse Squad.

According to a school newsletter, Matthews was a teacher at Wattle Grove Public School for seven years before becoming an assistant principal at Woodland Road Public School at the beginning of last year. He is in custody and is expected to face Campbelltown Local Court in May.

If anyone wishes to speak to police about this matter they can contact Liverpool Child Abuse Squad through Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.