By Ingrid Bown
The Herald
December 17, 2008
http://www.theherald.com.au/news/local/news/general/former-hunter-priests-sex-charges-doubled/1389145.aspx
A MAGISTRATE broke the news yesterday to former Hunter priest and school teacher John Sidney Denham that police had doubled the criminal charges against him to 134.
The 67 new charges, laid yesterday, relate to seven alleged victims. The 66-year-old is now accused of sexually abusing 39 boys across almost two decades.
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| John Sidney Denham |
Among the fresh charges are allegations of buggery, that he incited one boy to commit an indecent act with another student, that he fondled boys' penises and kissed a victim, putting his tongue inside the boy's mouth.
Fifty-one of the new charges relate to one victim, and are alleged to have occurred between January and December 1977 at Adamstown and Cardiff.
A further two victims were also allegedly indecently assaulted at Adamstown in the late 1970s.
The remaining four were allegedly abused in the late 1970s or early 1980s at Wingham and Taree.
"Mr Denham, have you been told of the fresh charges?" magistrate Michael Morahan asked him in Newcastle Local Court.
"No," Denham replied, via an audio-visual link from Silverwater jail.
"Well, there's a very large number of them the police have just laid them today," Mr Morahan said.
He told Denham a solicitor would speak to him.
Denham, whose short grey hair was neatly combed, crossed one arm over his chest after Mr Morahan told him of the new counts.
Denham initially faced 30 charges at a Sydney court in August, relating to 18 alleged victims in various parishes.
Police laid a further 37 charges at Newcastle in October, relating to a further 14 victims.
The charges, including multiple counts of indecent assault, sexual assault and buggery, span from 1968 to 1986.
The case was adjourned to the Newcastle Local Court on January 28.
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