A former tutor at Auckland's Dilworth School has been sentenced to 6 months home detention over two charges of indecent assault on two boys aged under 16.
Johnathan Peter Stephens, 74, of the Kapiti Coast, had earlier pled guilty to the charges that date back to 1971. Both victims, who can not be identified, were just 12 years old at the time.
The former tutor's offending came to light as part of a police investigation known as Operation Beverley. It was launched in April 2020 in response to several complaints of historic sexual abuse at the school.
In total 12 men have been arrested and charged with sex crimes linked to the school.
Stephens was a house tutor at Dilworth between 1969 and 1971 - the year when the offending occurred.
In court on Thursday one of his victims described how the lifelong impact of the one night Stephens approached him in his bed, as a young boy.
"I was an innocent boy at the time, physically sick and alone in my bed at Dilworth School," he says. Stephens was 22 at the time.
"He appeared so caring and gentle during the assault, I thought he was genuinely concerned for me. As it progressed I didn't understand what he was doing to me or why. I was frozen with terror and unable to move to fend him."
The now 63-year-old recalls how he felt powerless, and that single act has left a mark on his life ever since, damaging his bonds with his own children.
"As they became young boys, and reached the age I was when Stephens offended, I could no longer touch them or hug them for fear it's inappropriate."
He says while questions remain about what happened that day, seeing his abuser in court, helped him shift the burden he'd carried all these years.
"For the last 50 years I've worn a cloak of shame and secrecy because of your offending. It has been an constant burden, but through this process I believe it has been removed to be worn by the person who deserves it."
The second victim, did not appear in court, but had his statement read out by Crown prosecutor Jacob Barry. The man described how he'd kept the abuse a secret for most of his life, until the police investigation. And while he says the act has left him with no physical injuries or serious emotional harm, recalling the event was "traumatic" and saw him break down.
He told Stephens, who appeared before the court via an audio visual link; "what you did to me was a deplorable act upon a young and vulnerable child".
In delivering his sentence Judge Stephen Bonnar acknowledged Stephens, who was a university student at the time, had his own traumatic upbringing.
He also accepted his remorse as being genuine, and took note of his early guilty plea and "otherwise blameless life" in delivering the sentence.
But he said Stephens was in a position of trust at the time of his offending, and his acts were a "significant breach of that trust".
The judge said it was important to hold him to account, to promote a sense of responsibility, and to deter others from such offending.
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