Vic Priest Abused Eight Boys, Court Told

By Patrick Caruana
Herald Sun
August 26, 2013

http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/breaking-news/vic-priest-abused-eight-boys-court-told/story-fni0xqi4-1226704545761

A VICTORIAN priest abused eight different boys and assumed he would get away with it, a court has been told.

Salesian priest David Edwin Rapson has pleaded not guilty to eight charges of indecent assault and five counts of rape at Lysterfield College and Rupertswood College between the 1970s and 1990.

Prosecutor David Cordy told the Victorian County Court that the crown's case against Rapson relied heavily on the testimony of the eight alleged victims.

Mr Cordy said Rapson had abused the boys, sometimes with witnesses around, and assumed he would get away with it.

"You can imagine just the relative power ... between the parties," Mr Cordy told the jury on Monday.

"If anyone said anything, it was just going to be swept under the carpet - that's the way it was back then."

Rapson had told police a "pack of lies" when confronted with the allegations, Mr Cordy said.

Defence barrister Shaun Ginsbourg said Rapson denies all of the accusations against him.

He urged the jury to make its decision based on facts and not emotion.

His closing address will continue on Tuesday.