‘Registered offender’ charged over alleged child sex abuse
A Wallan father and Rotary club volunteer is facing more than 40 charges following an investigation into alleged child sex offences in places including Victoria’s snowfields.
Police allege Ewen Addison committed crimes against four children at locations including Mount Hotham, Chelsea, Sorrento, Edithvale and Wantirna between 2008 and 2012.
Alleged child sex offender Ewen Addison.
On Wednesday, The Age successfully fought to be able to name Addison after the 47-year-old attempted to have the case suppressed from the public.
Court documents show he is accused of dozens of offences against children under 16 including sexual penetration, showing them pornography and indecent touching.
According to court documents, Addison was a “registered offender” at the time of the alleged offences, which police claimed were committed against underage boys and girls.
Addison faced Melbourne Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday.
Charge sheets allege that as a “registered offender” Addison was in breach of his reporting obligations when he had ongoing contact with children without notifying police, and by leaving Victoria without telling the authorities.
At Mount Hotham, at various times between 2008 and 2012, Addison is accused of masturbating in front of a child and playing pornography in the presence of a child.
In Chelsea, he is accused of indecently touching a child and sexually penetrating a child under 16, among other allegations.
Other offences against children are alleged to have also occurred at Sorrento on the Mornington Peninsula. They include allegations Addison sexually penetrated a girl and committed indecent acts against a boy.
Addison faced Melbourne Magistrates’ Court for the fourth time on Wednesday, appearing remotely, from an undisclosed location while on bail.
The Age originally applied for copies of Addison’s charges in December, before the application was adjourned until February. His barrister applied to have the case suppressed, but magistrate Guillaume Bailin ultimately ruled against the application.
Police previously revealed Addison was arrested in Wallan in September.
According to his online profiles, Addison is a member of the Whittlesea Rotary Club and completed his secondary education at the prestigious NSW private school The Scots College.
The matter is due to return to court in May.
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