Paedophile teacher Greg Peter Vinen jailed over 1980s child’s rape
A DEPRAVED primary school teacher who was acquitted of molesting a child in the 1980s has been jailed for nine years, as police seek more suspected victims.
Law & Order
Don't miss out on the headlines from Law & Order. Followed categories will be added to My News.
A DEPRAVED primary school teacher who was acquitted of molesting a child in the 1980s has been jailed for nine years.
Greg Peter Vinen, 57, of Strathmerton, must serve at least six-and-a-half years after pleading guilty to raping a child whom he taught at Liddiard Road Primary in Traralgon in the 1980s.
The Latrobe Valley County Court heard the cunning predator was acquitted of similar offending in the 1980s while still a teacher and only stopped teaching when he accepted a “financial settlement” by the Department of Education to leave in 1992.
“A mutually satisfying end to his teaching career was negotiated,” Vinen’s lawyer Justin Hannebery said.
The court heard Vinen had lived off the settlement ever since and never worked again.
Vinen taught at schools including Essendon Grammar, Churchill North Primary and Albion Primary in Sunshine before making his way to the Latrobe Valley.
The court heard he indecently assaulted his victim, who was just eight at the time, on the first day he was introduced to his grade 3 class as a substitute teacher in the 1980s.
Vinen asked the pupils to sit on his knee while they showed them their work.
He then molested the boy while his pupils watched on.
On learning the boy had an interest in ferreting, Vinen turned up at his remote farm with a ferret in hand.
He won his parents’ trust and set about sexually abusing the boy over the next seven years.
The court heard Vinen assaulted the boy up to 200 times, molesting him on ferreting and fishing trips, while sitting on his lap at the wheel of his car, during tenpin bowling outings or in the boy’s own bedroom.
On one occasion, the boy crashed Vinen’s car while he was being molested at the wheel while sitting on the man’s lap.
The court heard Vinen was almost caught one night by the boy’s father as he molested his son.
“Don’t you dare say a word,” he told his victim after the close call.
On other occasions he told the boy he had access to a hitman and warned him that he would not be believed.
His terrified victim remained silent for years until he had his own school-aged child and felt compelled to come forward.
Vinen was caught on tape in 2012 apologising to his victim for his abuse.
He was arrested shortly after, but continued to deny the allegations until last Tuesday, when he negotiated with the Office of Public Prosecutions to plead guilty to five sex offences, including two charges of sexually penetrating a child under 16.
A victim impact statement read to the court outlined the boy’s sense of betrayal.
“His action, conduct, lies and deceit within our family has left a deep scar that no amount of time will heal,” he said.
The victim said he felt betrayed by the education and justice systems.
“I lost faith in our schools system, the justice system and the very systems that should have protected me,” he said.
Mr Hannebery suggested his client was not attracted to children, but was simply infatuated with his victim.
He did not submit any psychological assessments to support his claims.
Mr Hannebery said his client had shown some remorse by his belated guilty plea and argued Vinen would never be in a position to abuse a child under his care again.
Judge Michael Tinney condemned Vinen for his breach of trust.
“He selected him and targeted him. His next contact was turning up with a ferret ... He knows that’s one of the boy’s interests,” he said. “There’s a grooming process.”
Police have urged any other of Vinen’s suspected victims to come forward.