AUSTRALIA
Sydney Morning Herald
Ian Kirkwood
An Anglican priest who spoke out against serial paedophile priest Peter Rushton told the royal commission on Wednesday the process had taken a huge toll on him.
He has also told of hearing that Rushton had been with two vice squad detectives joking about which boys they would take to their tents one night after a scouting trip to the Williams River, in the Hunter Valley.
This anecdote – which came from a church member – marks a potential wider link to paedophile activity outside of the church.
The Rev Roger Dyer told the commission’s hearing in Newcastle he was the priest at St Luke’s Wallsend from 2006 to 2010, following Rushton into the parish.
Having worked in parishes that had been damaged by paedophilia, he said “the signs are the way the men relate to you and I just had a really, really bad feeling”.
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