Allan Keith Huggins: Counsellor abused young boys across Western Australia, New South Wales

A counsellor sexually abused young boys in a rural NSW town under the guise of relaxation and therapy techniques before moving on to find new victims on the other side of the country. Allan Keith Huggins stared emotionless at a Sydney jury on Monday as they handed down 36 guilty verdicts for the molestation of young male patients in Armidale from 1977 to 1986. The 77-year-old sexually touched or raped 10 teenagers at a youth centre for troubled boys as well as at a school and his own private practices. He faced trial in the Downing Centre District Court after being extradited to NSW at the end of his prison sentence in Western Australia. In 2015, a WA jury found he had abused seven boys while working as an education officer in a school-to-work program in 1990 and 1991. He is expected to serve another, lengthy sentence on the back of Monday’s jury decision. Victims and their supporters tearfully hugged each other in the court’s public gallery as the verdicts for the NSW abuse were delivered. Handing down unanimous decisions after two-and-a-half days of deliberations, jurors only acquitted Huggins of three out of 39 child sex abuse charges brought against him. Three more charges relating to a single complainant were dropped during the trial. All victims were vulnerable boys who Huggins abused when placed under his care. He used “relaxation techniques” that involved stripping off the boys’ clothing to make it easier to touch and groom them, crown prosecutor David Patch said during opening submissions. One boy was driven to secluded bushland to be abused. Another was shown pornographic material during therapy sessions and later raped by Huggins and a local dentist, Mr Patch said. Outside court one of the counsellor’s victims spoke on the condition of anonymity, telling AAP the verdicts were a jubilant occasion after 41 years of seeking justice. “This was a great day for those that were able to stand up and be counted,” he said. However, he criticised the justice system for moving too slowly, saying there were victims now unable to speak, including two allegedly abused by Huggins in his class, who had died by suicide. He called for more balance for victims, saying the criminal process erred too much on the side of caution, going further than merely deciding cases beyond a reasonable doubt. Those victims attending court had travelled in to wait to hear the verdicts using their own money without financial support from the Director of Public Prosecutions or Victim Services, he said. “And that’s wrong,” he told AAP. Huggins will face a sentence hearing on September 10. 1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732) National Sexual Abuse and Redress Support Service 1800 211 028 Lifeline 13 11 14 beyondblue 1300 22 4636