IN public he was the committed Hunter Christian and Salvation Army member who cared for young people. Behind closed doors he was a child sex offender who groomed the most vulnerable before raping them.
The
man, known as TW until a sentencing hearing later this month, where a
suppression order is expected to be lifted, is in custody after
convictions against five children in the Lake Macquarie area. One of the victims, Beth, said she had no doubt there were other
victims, after he raped her in the late 1980s when she was 14 under the
pretext of being a Salvation Army counsellor. ‘‘I was going through some
difficulties at the time and my mum sent me to him. He told her that
because he was closer to my age he’d be able to get through to me,’’
Beth said.