AUSTRALIA
ABC News
[with audio]
The child abuse royal commission has heard from the former principal of a Toowoomba primary school where 13 girls were abused by their teacher. Terry Hayes says he knew he was dealing with serious allegations of sexual abuse but referred the matter to his superiors and not to police.
Transcript
MARK COLVIN: The child abuse royal commission today heard from the former principal of a Toowoomba primary school where a teacher abused 13 little girls.
The public hearing in Brisbane heard that the principal received a complaint from the father of a girl about how her teacher Gerard Byrnes had touched her in 2007.
The principal at the time, Terry Hayes, says he knew he was dealing with serious allegations of sexual abuse. But he referred the matter to his superiors and not to police.
The inquiry has also heard the girl was asked to re-enact the abuse with her father in front of the principal and another staff member.
Stephanie Smail reports.
STEPHANIE SMAIL: Terry Hayes is no stranger to the witness box. In 2009 he was on trial, accused of failing to refer allegations of child sexual abuse to police.
Today the former principal faced the royal commission and was forced to explain what he did and didn’t do when the father of a grade-four girl came forward in 2007 with an allegation about one of his staffers, Gerard Byrnes.
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