Christian Brother Obbens Is Facing More Charges

Broken Rites
February 13, 2015

http://brokenrites.org.au/drupal/node/345

Christian Brother William John Obbens (also known as Brother "Dominic" Obbens), now aged 69 and living in Sydney, will face four charges of indecent assault of "persons under 16 under authority" when his case has another mention in court in March 2015. Police allege that the offences were committed on two boys, then aged 13 and 12, in the late 1980s, while Brother Obbens was a teacher at St Patrick's Christian Brothers College in Goulburn, south-western New South Wales.

Obbens was arrested at his Sydney home on 11 December 2014 by detectives from Goulburn (in a special unit called Strike Force Charish). The investigators are Senior Detective Dave Turner and Senior Detective Michael Callegha. A leading officer in the Goulburn Detectives Office is Detective Sergeant Matt Woods.

This case had its first mention in Goulburn Local Court on 22 December 2014 when the prosecutors officially filed the charges against Brother Obbens relating to one boy. The court granted an adjournment, during which the prosecutors and the defence were to exchange some court documentation.

The case had its next mention in Goulburn Local Court on 11 February 2015. The court was told that two additional charges have been laid against Brother Obbens regarding a second boy.

Defence lawyer Greg Walsh told the court that he would need an adjournment to prepare a reply to the additional charges.

The court scheduled this case for its next mention on 18 March 2015. As Brother Obbens lives in Sydney, the court excused him from attending the March hearing if he islegally represented.

Brother Obbens has not yet been required to indicate how he intends to plead regarding the charges.

Obbens has been granted conditional bail.

Broken Rites research

The defendant's name was listed in court documents as: OBBENS, William John. When he first joined the Christian Brothers in the 1960s, this religious order normally gave its new recruits a "religious" name. Therefore, in the Christian Brothers, he became known as Brother Dominic Obbens (and was sometimes listed in church publications as Brother W.D. Obbens).

Brother Obbens was a teacher at St Patrick’s College, Goulburn, from 1986 to 1989, according to a book, entitled Up on the Hill: A History of St Patrick’s College, written by David Bollen.

St Patrick's College Goulburn was formerly a boys-only boarding school, conducted by the Christian Brothers. According to a history book about this school, the Brothers’ involvement at St Patrick’s College was winding down by the mid-1990s.

In 2000, the boys' college merged with a Catholic girls' school, Marian College, to become today's Trinity Catholic College Goulburn.