Gary John Dreyer: Convicted paedophile jailed for lavishing kids with cards and cash

A convicted paedophile has been sentenced for failing to report contact he had with two children, aged 14 and 10, who he plied with cards and cash, a court has heard.

A convicted paedophile did not report contact he’d had with children, aged 10 and 14 — who he lavished with birthday and Christmas cards containing hundreds of dollars cash — because their mother was present, a court has heard.

Gary John Dreyer, of Terrigal, faced Gosford Local Court on Thursday after pleading guilty to two counts of breaching the reporting conditions of the Child Protection Register (CPR).

The court heard the 64-year-old was placed on the CPR in August 2020 after being convicted and sentenced for observing a child in a private act and two counts of committing an act on indecency.

An agreed set of police facts states Dreyer was registered as a child sex offender until August 2035 and was subject to a Child Protection Prohibition Order when he befriended a single mother and “built up a rapport with her” by offering assistance with her children, bringing in her washing and taking her bins out each week.

Dreyer arrives at a previous appearance at Gosford Local Court. Picture: Richard Noone

“His contact with her and the children was becoming more and more frequent,” the facts state.

In December 2020 he gave the woman’s son a 14th birthday card with $150 inside.

“The birthday card had a picture of two naked males showing their backsides on the front,” the facts state.

“(The mother) was very surprised that the accused gave her son so much money but the accused insisted. She also felt the card was inappropriate but didn’t want to say anything.

“The accused returned to the house later that night with a birthday cake and joined in birthday celebrations with him and his young friends.”

On Christmas Day Dreyer gave both the children cards with $100 inside and again their mother felt it was too much but he told her he had “no one else to spoil”.

In January Dreyer attended the woman’s daughter’s 10th birthday and again gave her a card with $150 inside.

On February 4, 2021, the single mother contacted police with concerns about Dreyer’s contact with her children.

“No one else to spoil” Dreyer gave birthday and Christmas cards to kids which he did not report to authorities. Picture: Richard Noone

“The accused has not disclosed the contact with these children as required by his Child Protection Registry obligations,” the facts state.

Dreyer’s barrister Michael Burke told the court his client understood the obligations explained to him under the CPR — and an intensive corrections order he had received following the indecent assault of another boy — were that he could not have contact with a child under 18 “unless in the presence of a responsible adult”.

Mr Burke said Dreyer thought, given the children’s mother was present when he gave them cards, he was not breaching his reporting conditions.

Mr Burke said Dreyer also made repeated attempts to contact police to report that he had sold his business and advise them of a change of vehicle around the time he had contact with the children.

Dreyer was convicted of peering over a toilet cubicle at a boy at Erina Fair in 2020. It was one of three offences which landed him on the Child Protection Register. (AAP Image/Sue Graham)

Mr Burke said these attempts made it evident Dreyer was not trying to hide from police or diminish his reporting responsibilities.

However Magistrate Michael Antrum said Dreyer “has still to come to a full understanding” of his obligations under the orders and the contact with the children was “highly inappropriate for a person on the (Child Protection) Register”.

Magistrate Antrum convicted Dreyer of both counts of breaching his reporting conditions and sentenced him to nine months jail.

However he suspended the sentence for Dreyer to undergo an assessment to see if he was eligible to serve the imprisonment by way of home detention.

He will reappear at court on March 3.