Jeffrey ‘Joffa’ Corfe to stand trial over child sex abuse charges

Collingwood superfan Jeffrey ‘Joffa’ Corfe has been accused of sexually abusing a teenage boy.

Jeffrey 'Joffa' Corfe leaves his lawyer’s office on Wednesday. Picture: Mark Stewart

Collingwood superfan Jeffrey ‘Joffa’ Corfe has been committed to stand trial over allegations he sexually abused a teenage boy more than 15 years ago.

Corfe, 61, pleaded not guilty to two counts of sexual penetration of a child under 16, following a contested committal hearing in the Melbourne Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday.

The alleged victim, who was then-aged 14 or 15-years-old, came forward to police last year claiming he had been sexually assaulted by Corfe in his home in 2005 after the pair began chatting on MSN messenger.

The alleged victim, who gave his evidence in closed court, provided investigators with a series of emails between himself and the alleged offender who went by the screen name David Winston, court documents stated.

Corfe has been committed to stand trial over historical child sex offences. Picture: Mark Stewart

A digital report revealed the email account was created in the suburb of Coburg.

A friend and former partner of the alleged victim said in 2017 or 2018 the man confided in him that he’d been abused as a teenage boy.

“I can’t recall what brought it up … he just decided he wanted to tell me,” the witness said. He told the court his friend initially claimed he had been assaulted by the brother of one of his friends.

But several months later, he revealed that “Joffa” was the man who assaulted him, the court heard. The witness said he did not follow AFL football and did not recognise the name of the former Collingwood cheer squad leader.

Corfe has pleaded not guilty to two counts of sexual penetration of a child under 16. Picture: Mark Stewart

Asked by defence lawyer Christopher Terry if he questioned why his friend had originally told him he’d been assaulted by someone else, the witness said it was clear his friend didn’t feel comfortable talking about it in detail.

“So I didn’t push him,” the witness said. Mr Terry also asked if the alleged victim followed AFL.

“No, definitely not,” the witness replied.

The court heard the alleged victim provided sex crime detectives with a hand-drawn map, charting the route he had taken from his home to an address in Coburg where the alleged incident took place on January 29.

Joffa, one of the Magpies’ most recognisable supporters, was arrested in May last year while visiting Melbourne from his home in Queensland.

Magistrate Kieran Gilligan on Wednesday found there was sufficient evidence for Corfe to stand trial.

He will face the County Court in January.