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Police Commissioner Ken Moroney was once involved in a failed investigation into an Anglican priest who later became one of the state's most notorious pedophiles. The revelation comes just a week after calls by NSW's top officer for a national summit on the growing menace of child abuse. The case, which revolved around a complaint of indecent assault of an eight-year-old girl, occurred more than 20 years ago when Mr Moroney was a sergeant at West Wyalong. Documents obtained by The Sun-Herald indicate police were reluctant to proceed because of the delicacy of placing such a young witness before a court without corroborative evidence. The law finally caught up with the accused, Robert Ellmore, who is serving an 11-year jail term. His conviction in February 2002 caused a furore when it was learnt senior Anglicans knew of the allegations years earlier. At the time The Sun-Herald identified lawyer Peter Young, who advised the church to take no action over the girl's claims as he reasoned the Church lacked the primary facts. Mr Young is now chief judge in equity in the NSW Supreme Court. There is no suggestion the commissioner's or any other officer's role was in any way improper. Opposition Leader John Brogden, describing the matter as one of genuine public interest yesterday said, "This matter must be addressed quickly. It is important the commissioner has the support and trust of the people of NSW." At the time of the complaint, Ellmore denied the allegation and apparently no further action was taken. A faded copy of a Department of Youth and Community Services letter addressed to an Anglican bishop outlines at least one version of the events. "In discussion with the police, it was felt that you should be informed of the complaint for your consideration and, at the same time, affording the Reverend Ellmore the benefit of your counsel," the correspondence states. "Sgt. K. Moroney or myself are available for any further enquiries you wish to make." Long before he was ordained, Ellmore was jailed for a month for aggravated assault on a 10-year-old girl in Toowoomba, in 1957. A decade later, he was fined for indecently exposing himself near Sydney Harbour Bridge. Despite his dark past, the former panel beater and father-of-two was made a deacon after two years' study at St John's Theological College at Morpeth in the Hunter Valley, in 1976. He lost his licence to preach in 1991, after assaulting a girl aged just five during a weekend trip to Mudgee and was placed on a good behaviour bond. In 1999 two sisters brought damning allegations against him as a result of their sexual abuse 23 years earlier in country NSW. The girls were joined by a third victim who, as a seven-year-old, was attacked by Ellmore in the vestry of All Saints Anglican Cathedral at Bathurst, in 1976. After pleading guilty in all three cases, he was jailed for 12 months. Legal documents indicate he was pursued by detectives over the molestation of twin girls, 7, at Regents Park in 1998, but the charges were dropped by their parents on emotional grounds. While still on parole and on bail after being charged with two further sets of allegations dating back to the 1980s, he indecently assaulted a family friend's eight-year-old daughter in 2001. Speaking out on the subject of child abuse last week in Sydney, Mr Moroney likened the problem to an epidemic. "We can't put our heads in the sand," he said. "We can't talk about it in hushed tones, as if it isn't there." Sun-Herald (19-12-2004) John Kidman |
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