John Hidding: Ex-Launceston man guilty of historic child abuse

An elderly man found guilty of molesting a teenage girl in the 1980s still denies the offence, a court has heard. WHAT HE WAS SENTENCED TO >>

UPDATED: An elderly man formerly of northern Tasmania still denies molesting a teenage girl in the 1980s despite being found guilty by a magistrate of one of the two offences of indecent assault he was charged with.

Western Australia man John Harmannus Hidding, 70, formerly of the West Tamar region, was found guilty by Launceston Magistrate Sharon Cure on Monday of assaulting a girl aged in her mid-teens at her Launceston residence sometime between 1984-87 by fondling her breast.p

A second charge, that he molested her again on a boat off Beauty Point by touching her vagina sometime between 1988-89 was dismissed for want of evidence.

Commencing her sentencing submissions on Tuesday, Hidding’s defence lawyer, Olivia Jenkins, said she “doesn’t resile from her instructions” that Hidding maintains his innocence of both charges.

She said her client, who formerly owned Hidding Hardware stores, which employed up to 60 people and was founded by his father, prior to his moving to Western Australia with his wife in 2002, posed no further risk to the community due to his advanced age, ill health and absence of any further allegations.

Since moving to WA, Hidding, who is now retired, worked as a pickup truck driver and managed a storage centre.

Ms Cure sentenced Hidding to four months’ imprisonment, wholly suspended for an operational period of two years.

EARLIER: An elderly Tasmanian man who moved interstate in the years after he was confronted with allegations he molested a teenage girl twice has been found guilty of one of the two charges of indecent assault he faced.

Western Australia man John Harmannus Hidding, 70, understood to have formerly lived in the West Tamar region prior to relocating in the years after 2002, previously pleaded not guilty to the charges.

Launceston Magistrate Sharon Cure on Monday found that one of the charges, which occurred at the Launceston residence of a girl aged in her mid-teens sometime between March 29, 1984 and March 29, 1987, was proved.

Another charge, alleged to have occurred between March 29, 1988 and March 29, 1989 on a boat off Beauty Point, involving the same teen, was dismissed although Ms Cure found it had the “ring of truth” about it.

According to the victim’s account of the proven assault, relayed to the court by Ms Cure, the teenager was sitting in the hallway of her house on a bar stool on the phone to a friend when the assault occurred.

“On one occasion (the defendant) stopped, stood behind her breathing down her neck, and put his hand down her top and fondled her breast or breasts,” Ms Cure said.

“She said he touched her whole breast and fondled a nipple with one hand.

“He moved his hand over her breast and squeezed for 5–10 seconds before she pulled his hand out and he continued down the hallway.

“She told her friend (over the phone), ‘You are not going to believe this’, in an immature, giggly way.”

Ms Cure found that Hidding was involved in a second, subsequent incident involving the teen, for which there was no charge, wherein Hidding showed his teen victim and her friend, the one to whom the victim was on the phone to during the previous assault, pornography.

“She didn’t recall him saying anything but she felt uncomfortable,” Ms Cure said.

Returning from the bathroom, Ms Cure found Hidding had asked the teenager a derogatory, sexualised question.

Despite finding Hidding an “arrogant” defendant and that the victim’s account of the alleged assault on the boat had a “ring of truth” about it, Ms Cure determined it could not be proven beyond reasonable doubt, owing to the configuration of the boat and Hidding’s testimony it could not be operated with just himself and the teen on-board.

Hidding moved to Western Australia in the years following 2002, the court heard, after a meeting convened by people familiar with the matter put the allegations to Hidding.

In his previous evidence, Hidding told the court the move to WA was to be closer to the parents of his wife, who was supporting him in court, and not because of the meeting.

Hidding had no prior convictions of a like nature, the court heard.

His matter will return to court on Tuesday for sentencing submissions.