AUSTRALIA
Australian Broadcasting Corporation
August 13, 2018
By Bianca Gurra
A woman who was raped by a former Anglican priest 30 years ago has detailed the extensive and long-lasting impact of the abuse in court.
John Philip Aitchison was today sentenced to nine years behind bars for the historical rape.
Earlier this year, a Supreme Court jury found Aitchison guilty of seven acts of indecency and five counts of rape against the woman, then a 13-year-old Canberra girl, which took place over two years in the 1980s.
Aitchison pleaded not guilty to all charges.
He has previously been convicted of other offences involving children in the ACT, Victoria, New South Wales and the United Kingdom, and he served roughly two years at the Junee Correctional Centre in the late 1990s.
The first assault on the Canberra teenager took place at the All Saints’ Anglican Church in Ainslie, after the she finished violin practice.
During the trial, the woman told the court Aitchison had told her to look into the corner while he abused her, and pray that she might see her pet dog that had died.
At the same time, Aitchison — then a deacon — prayed to God for forgiveness.
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