Paedophile Maurice Van Ryn’s sentence increased after appeal by prosecutor

FORMER Bega Cheese boss Maurice Van Ryn’s seven-year minimum sentence for child abuse was “an affront to the administration of justice” court finds.

Maurice Van Ryn

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FORMER Bega Cheese boss Maurice Van Ryn’s seven-year minimum sentence for child abuse was “an affront to the administration of justice” and manifestly inadequate, NSW’s highest court has found.

The Criminal Court of ­Appeal has almost doubled the 59-year-old’s non-parole period to 13 years and six months for abusing nine children, some as young as eight, over an 11-year period.

The DPP challenged the initial sentence, saying it was ‘manifestly inadequate’.

On September 9, District Court judge Clive Jeffreys sentenced Van Ryn to a maximum sentence of 13 years in jail with a non-parole period of seven years, giving him a 25 per cent discount for his early guilty plea and taking into account his “contrition” and the fact that he had sought treatment.

Yesterday the three-judge appeal panel of Justices Mark Leeming, Peter Johnson and Robert Allan Hulme found a number of errors in the way the District Court arrived at its sentence.

The panel argued Justice Jeffreys did not clearly explain his verdict or indicate the seriousness of Van Ryn’s crimes. It also found Van Ryn was not deeply contrite, as the District Court concluded, but only remorseful “to a degree”.

Van Ryn (below) regularly abused his victims while at a swimming pool and persistently abused one teenage boy under the pretext of “helping him with computer games”.

Van Ryn had told the District Court he was sorry for any harm he “might” have done.

 

Convicted paedophile Maurice Van Ryn’s seven-year non-parole prison term has been extended to at least 13 years and six months.

 

He said at the time “there were those odd moments, unfortunately, when I did not exert the control I should have”.

The court concluded Van Ryn’s good character and ­attempts at rehabilitation, including the use of anti-libidinal medication, did not outweigh the need for a strong sentence.

The original sentence was quashed and a new maximum of 18 years set down. He will be eligible for parole in June 2028.

Victims’ family members cheered as Chief Justice Tom Bathurst announced the verdict. A group spokesman said the result was “astounding”.

“It’s beyond our wildest ­expectations,” he said outside.

The man, wishing only to be known as Ken, said the revised sentence set a new benchmark for similar offences in NSW. “The reason we took this course was not out of vengeance but to protect the community,” he said.

Van Ryn was the  CEO  of Bega Cheese for 15 years.