Shane Stanley Jocumsen found guilty of four historic sex crimes

Moments after a former Queensland councillor and community leader was convicted of child sex abuse, his victim delivered an emotional impact statement to the court. *WARNING: DISTRESSING CONTENT

A former Queensland councillor has been found guilty of four out of the five historical sex allegations he was charged with in Gympie District Court.

Shane Stanley Jocumsen, 61, who served as a Cooloola Shire Councillor from 2004 to 2008, was found guilty on Friday of three charges of indecent treatment of a boy under 17, and one charge of indecent assault.

The offences happened on an unknown date between 1979 and 1980, and in 1985.

Jocumsen was between 19 and 25 at the time.

It took the jury less than five hours to reach their verdict. He had pleaded not guilty on Tuesday.

Shane Jocumsen left Gympie District Court escorted by a police officer on Friday, where he was taken and will remain in custody for at least the next eight months.

After the verdict had been delivered, Crown Prosecutor Alex Stark invited one of Jocumsen’s victims, who is now in his 50s, to read a victim impact statement to the court.

The man was asked if he preferred to stand at the bar table or to stand in the witness box, the latter of meaning he would be facing Jocumsen.

He said he would rather stand in the witness box, as “ (Jocumsen) deserves” to see him face-to-face.

He spoke of the lasting effects Jocumsen’s actions had on him, even all these years later.

He said the abuse at the hands of Jocumsen had impacted his mental health, ability to deal with conflict, and his relationship with his wife.

Shane Jocumsen was found guilty of three charges of indecent treatment of a boy under 17, and one charge of indecent assault.

“I’ll never recover from the abuse, it haunts me daily,” he said.

The one consolation he said, was that justice had been served through the guilty verdict.

“ … Other people (now) know what you’ve done, Shane, and this time you will carry it for the rest of your life.”

The court previously heard Jocumsen used his weight to “pin down” his victims during the assaults.

One victim is now a business owner in Gympie.

Jocumsen targeted the first complainant, the teenage boy, while he was alone and inappropriately touched him before dragging him to a bedroom and indecently dealing with him.

“The defendant … pinned him down by using his weight across (the victim’s) body,” Mr Stark said.

Gympie District Court heard gruesome details of Shane Jocumsen’s attack on two boys almost 40 years ago during his three-day trial.

Jocumsen then performed an indecent act shortly after, still on top of his victim.

“(The victim) will never forget what the defendant did to him … He was older than him, bigger than him, and the defendant sexually abused him,” Mr Stark told the court.

Then, approximately five years later in 1985, Jocumsen inappropriately touched his second victim, the court heard.

Previously, defence lawyer Peter Feeney claimed there were inconsistencies in evidence from the two victims, including how a building mentioned was not in existence until after the events.

Mr Feeney described his client as a highly involved member of the community, who had worked alongside the Salvation Army, the Gympie Show Society and a local politician when he served as councillor in the early 2000s.

Shane Jocumsen (pictured here in 2018) worked as a school facilities officer at James Nash State High School for 10 years, until his blue card was revoked after being charged.

Jocumsen also worked as a school facilities officer at James Nash State High School for ten years, until he was charged with the crimes before the court and had his blue card revoked.

Mr Feeney also said Jocumsen’s marriage suffered after he was charged, however the future of the relationship was “under review”.

Judge Amanda McDonnell took into account his work in the community but also the “serious” nature of the offending and said she saw no other option than to sentence him to time behind bars.

Jocumsen was sentenced to 18 months in jail, but will be eligible for parole after eight months.

As he left the courthouse, a man was heard shouting after him “how do you like me now, fatso?”

Originally published as Shane Stanley Jocumsen found guilty of four historic sex crimes