Queensland lets down mother of murdered child
Brit pervert sentenced for child sex crimes on 3 continents
Sick paedo jailed for 27 years for horrible child abuse
Murdered Girl's Mother 'Gobsmacked' Child Safety Minister Didn't Tell Her About Report
By Leonie Mellor and Gail Burke
The mother of murdered school girl Tiahleigh Palmer is "gobsmacked" the State Government did not consult or advise her about the results of three major reviews of child safety in Queensland that were commissioned in the wake of her child's tragic death.
The 12-year-old's foster father, Rick Thorburn, was charged with murder and other members of Tiahleigh's foster family are also facing criminal charges, including incest.
Tiahleigh had been missing from foster care for six days before her body was found on the banks of the Pimpama River in November 2015.
The three reports into Queensland's child protection system, foster care system and blue card scheme tabled in state parliament on Thursday cited Tiahleigh's death as the reason for the reviews.
But her mother Cindy Palmer told the ABC she was not informed the reports had even concluded.
Ms Palmer said she was upset Child Safety Minister Shannon Fentiman never reached out to her for a meeting or consulted her about Tiahleigh's case.
Ms Palmer said she was "gobsmacked" when she saw Tiahleigh's face splashed across the television news on Thursday night.
"I was actually pretty gobsmacked because I wasn't aware it was going to happen," she said. "The first I heard of it was on the news. Nobody rings me in regards to these type of matters or anything relating to Tiahleigh, to be honest. "I had no idea the reports had been finished or what was inside them.
"So obviously I'm pretty upset because you know, they want to put Tiahleigh's face all over the TV but they don't want to actually consult me."
'An oversight'
Cheryl Vardon, the chief executive and principal commissioner of the Queensland Family and Child Commission, said she contacted Ms Palmer Friday morning to apologise.
"It was an oversight," Ms Vardon said. "We had kept in touch with Cindy. She knew that the reports were in train but we omitted to tell her of the release date and that has caused her some distress for which I have apologised."
It came just weeks after the parents of a manslaughter victim, Gary and Leanne Pullen, received an apology from the Queensland Corrective Services Minister for being kept in the dark about the parole of one of the perpetrators, even as they publicly applauded the Government for new "no body, no parole" legislation.
Changes are a band-aid solution: Cindy Palmer
The review recommends empowering children to prevent abuse by proactively seeking their views on carers.
It recommended before a foster carer's credentials are renewed, the Department of Communities, Child Safety and Disability Services should interview children in placement and their protection officers or relevant community visitors.
The reports were sparked by the death of 12-year-old Tiahleigh Palmer in 2015. (Supplied: Queensland Police Service)
It said the department should also talk to the schools and early childhood centres that foster children attend about the suitability of a carer, and consult other children who may have previously been in care with the foster parent.
Cindy Palmer said she thought the recommendations were a "band-aid fix to a problem that's much bigger".
She called for any changes to be rolled out nationally because the problems were not confined to Queensland. "I think anything they can do to help fix whatever's going wrong is a great idea. I just think that they're not doing things big enough to make a decent enough change," she said.
Ms Palmer said she did not know whether the recommendations, had they been in place earlier, would have changed Tiahleigh's fate.
"We don't know what went wrong to be honest with Tiahleigh's case," she said.
She said expanding blue-card qualifications was a great start but more needed to be done.
The review of the foster care system said a total of 163 of the more than 8,500 children living in care in Queensland were subjected to substantial harm in the 2015-16 reporting period, the majority for emotional harm, but with 13 per cent suffering sexual abuse.
It noted that the actual rate of harm might be even higher because many children in care did not report abuse.
The review also recommended the department provide education programs to children in care about personal safety and how to stay safe.
Such information should be provided to all children in school, not just those in care.
The Office of the Public Guardian is also encouraged to improve the capacity of community visitors to build better relationships with foster children so they feel more comfortable to tell them about abuse.
Pimpama River, QL
British man sentenced to 264 months for child sex crimes in 3 continents
PHILADEPHIA — An investigation by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations, (HSI) Harrisburg office contributed to the sentencing of a British citizen, on Sept. 4, 2017, for sexual exploitation of children, blackmail, causing children to engage in sexual activity, and child rape. This was an HSI-led investigation worked jointly between HSI Harrisburg, HSI London, HSI Cocoa Beach, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC), Brevard County Sheriff’s Office, and the Northumbria Police.
Paul Leighton, 32, was sentenced to 264 months in the United Kingdom (UK), for 21 counts relating to child sex crimes. The man committed child sex crimes in the United States, Canada, Europe and Australia.
“This sentencing is a testament to the tenacity and tireless dedication of every law enforcement agency involved in this case, and further strengthens HSI’s resolve to investigate pedophiles who harm innocent children,” said Marlon V. Miller, special agent in charge of HSI Philadelphia. “We owe it to the young victims to make certain that pedophiles who commit sex crimes here and overseas pay a high price for their criminal actions.”
HSI Harrisburg coordinated all U.S.-based investigations related to Leighton’s U.S. victims, and was instrumental in providing the UK’s Northumbria Police with evidence for known U.S. victims. HSI London anticipates the extradition of Leighton to the U.S. to stand trial for additional offenses against U.S. victims located in the Middle District of Pennsylvania.
"Protecting children from exploitation is one of the most important missions we have, and as this case demonstrates, it takes the collaboration of law enforcement agencies around the world to tackle this crime,” said James R. Mancuso, attaché for HSI in London. "HSI is committed to working with partners like the Northumbria Police to arrest individuals who commit such heinous acts and ensure that they are prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law."
This investigation was conducted under HSI’s Operation Predator, an international initiative to protect children from sexual predators. Since the launch of Operation Predator in 2003, HSI has arrested more than 16,000 individuals for crimes against children, including the production and distribution of online child pornography, traveling overseas for sex with minors, and sex trafficking of children. In fiscal year 2016, more than 2,600 child predators were arrested by HSI special agents under this initiative, and more than 800 victims identified or rescued.
HSI encourages the public to report suspected child predators and any suspicious activity through its toll-free Tip Line at 1-866-DHS-2-ICE or by completing its online tip form. Both are staffed around the clock by investigators. From outside the U.S. and Canada, callers should dial 802-872-6199. Hearing impaired users can call TTY 802-872-6196.
Suspected child sexual exploitation or missing children may be reported to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, an Operation Predator partner, via its toll-free 24-hour hotline, 1-800-THE-LOST.
For additional information about wanted suspected child predators, download HSI’s Operation Predator smartphone app or visit the online suspect alerts page. HSI is a founding member of the Virtual Global Taskforce, an international alliance of law enforcement agencies and private industry sector partners working together to prevent and deter online child sexual abuse.
Cambridge paedophile convinced child
he was their 'boyfriend'
From BBC Cambridgeshire
A "vicious paedophile" who convinced a child he was their "boyfriend" has been jailed for 27 years.
Robin Matthews, 63, of Hobart Road, Cambridge, took the child to woodland and said he would "bury them alive if they told anyone about the abuse".
Matthews was found guilty (2nd story on link) of 20 counts of child sexual abuse and one of child cruelty for offences between 1970 and the early 1990s with two children.
The victims were as young as four and the abuse lasted years.
Sentencing at Cambridge Crown Court, Judge David Farrell said Matthews was a "vile bully, prepared to use a younger child for [his] perverted sexual purposes".
The court heard that "aggressive" Matthews made "serious threats" to one victim and threatened violence if they "made any noise or protested".
One victim did try to speak out, the judge said, but "was not believed".
'Stolen childhood'
The judge added the child had been "let down by the authorities at the time" and by the age of 16 believed Matthews to be their boyfriend because of all the sexual things they had done together.
Eventually, Matthews was arrested in July 2015 after the pair disclosed the historic abuse.
In an impact statement read out in court by prosecutor Charles Myatt, one victim said they felt they had their "childhood stolen away" from them.
Det Con Helen Tebbit said: "I would like to thank the victims for giving evidence against Matthews. "I know this would not have been easy, but I do hope they both find some closure knowing their abuser is now behind bars and they can move on with their lives."
Matthews was found guilty following a week-long trial of 13 counts of indecent assault, seven counts of buggery and one count of child cruelty.
On top of his 27-year prison sentence, he was given an extra year on licence and an order to prevent him from having contact with any children under the age of 18.
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