AUSTRALIA
ABC News
By Emilie Gramenz
A former Anglican rector and convicted paedophile has said he suspected a church friend was “in cahoots” with other offenders sexually abusing boys around Australia.
The Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse has been examining the Anglican Church and its youth group, the Church of England Boys Society (CEBS), at a public hearing in Hobart.
Former rector Garth Hawkins, who changed his name to Robin Goodfellow, was convicted in 2003 for sexually abusing seven boys as he moved between Tasmanian parishes in the 1970s and ’80s.
The commission is investigating the possibility of a multi-state paedophile ring operating in CEBS over about 40 years.
In his evidence, Hawkins was asked if he believed his friend and fellow offender Louis Daniels, the former Archdeacon of Burnie, could have been involved in a paedophile ring.
Hawkins responded: “No.”
Counsel assisting Naomi Sharp then asked: “Did you ever suspect that Mr Daniels was in cahoots with anyone in relation to his sexual abuse of boys around Australia?”
Hawkins paused before answering: “I think he probably was, yes.”
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