Park Orchards Church of England Boys’ Society member wants paedophile Barry Watson kept in jail

KEEPING convicted paedophile Barry Watson in prison should be a no-brainer for the parole board, according to a former member of a boys’ club he led.

RIbbons on a Loud Fence at Park Orchards for the victims of sexual abuse by Barry Watson.

KEEPING convicted paedophile Barry Watson in prison should be a no-brainer, a former Park Orchards Church of England Boys’ Society member says.

Wonga Park resident Dave (not his real name) approached Leader after reading about Watson’s parole hearing later this year.

A fellow Wonga Park resident, Susie, went public last week with her ordeal at the hands of the former Park Orchards CEBS youth leader, saying when she was a 10-year-old girl, she and a friend attended a sleepover at his house where he made the two girls stand naked in the bathroom as the bath water cooled down. Susie also said later that night he put his hand up her nightie and touched her bottom.

Woman struggles with memories of night at pedophile Barry Watson’s house

And now Dave also wants to speak up for the first time about his own encounter with Watson, now 75, who was convicted of child sex crimes in 2010 and subsequently jailed.

“I attended Park Orchards Boys Club while Barry was in charge. I was towel dried naked by him after a canoe trip to Warrandyte’s Pound Bend at the age of 10 as I recall,” he said.

“As a young boy I remember vividly his actions that day but never really understood that it was wrong.

“He also did this with other boys. It was kind of a running joke between us that he liked us to not be wearing clothes when he would dry us off.”

Dave said his incident with Watson was a one-off, but believes the convicted paedophile is currently where he belongs.

“I didn’t see anything with anyone else, but I don’t want him to get out of jail,” he said.

‘Loud fence’ honours victims as parole date nears for Park Orchards paedophile Barry Watson

Dave told Leader he wasn’t aware that Watson had been jailed until he read reports of his upcoming parole hearing.

“Basically not long after we finished at the boys club there were rumours about what he’d been doing,” he said.

“He just should not be given the option to get out, given what he’s done. It should be a no brainier.”

The father-of-three said empathy for Watson’s most deeply troubled victims had motivated him to speak out.

“I’ve never really been troubled by it other than thinking it was strange, it’s not something that has played on my mind,” he said.

“But for those people who were really affected by his crimes, I think, how dare they give this bloke an option of getting out.

“I now feel like I need to confront him, or at least support those that experienced his evil conduct to hopefully convince the court to let him rot in jail.”

The Adult Parole Board has not been able to give Leader a specific date for Watson’s hearing, but said its primary concern was the safety and protection of the community.

Doncaster Detective Adam Dowling says victims are encouraged to make a report to police, regardless of when the incident occurred.