bobandcarole wrote:
> Pedophile ring suspect commits suicide in hotel
> Email Print Normal font Large font Mark Forbes
> August 17, 2006
>
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> AdvertisementA Sydney man who has committed suicide in Indonesia is a
> suspected member of a pedophile ring linked to a language school
> established and supervised by the Australian Government.
>
> Don Hancock died on Tuesday in Surabaya, where he was director of
> studies of the Indonesia Australia Language Foundation. He was found in
> a hotel room with a quantity of pills. His door was locked from the
> inside.
>
> Another foundation employee, Peter Smith, was arrested in Jakarta this
> month for allegedly molesting up to 50 boys and producing child
> pornography.
>
> The affair is looming as a diplomatic embarrassment, with Australian
> officials attempting to distance themselves from the foundation
> yesterday.
>
> The Indonesian police are widening their investigation into the alleged
> pedophile ring. Australian police are also understood to be examining
> the allegations.
>
> The foundation board, which includes two senior Australian public
> servants, has demanded that the chief executive, Geoffrey Crewes,
> ensure more thorough background checks are made on current and
> prospective employees. Mr Crewes flew to Surabaya yesterday, where he
> refused to answer any questions from the Herald.
>
> Investigators believe Smith was part of a pedophile ring involving
> several foreigners abusing young Indonesians and distributing child
> porn. Smith, then known as Ellis Eyre, was convicted in 1994 of
> molesting Aboriginal pupils at a Northern Territory school where he
> taught.
>
> After his release, Eyre changed his name, was issued a new passport and
> moved to Indonesia. A foreign affairs spokesman said the passport was
> issued because police had not alerted the department to the original
> offence.
>
> Some of Smith's victims said a second Australian man, "Don", had also
> abused them. Initially, police believed they were referring to Donald
> Storen, who was arrested on child molestation charges in Lombok last
> month.
>
> Indonesian police now suspect that "Don" lived in Surabaya and was
> Hancock. Smith was an English language teacher for the foundation and
> had worked in Surabaya as well as Jakarta.
>
> Sources said that Hancock, 55, from Sydney, did not die of natural
> causes. He was not interviewed by police before his death.
>
> Indonesian police last night said they had received permission from
> Hancock's family for an autopsy to determine the cause of death. They
> also said they were examining Hancock's phone records for links to
> Smith.
>
> The charity that took several street children to police with complaints
> about Smith said it was told five foreigners were part of the network.
>
> The founder of the Jakarta Centre for Street Children, Andri Cahyadi,
> said a 12-year-old had told him that before that he posed for Smith he
> had met a man named Don, who had asked him to undress and masturbate in
> front of a camera.
>
> Asked about the pedophile investigation, an Australian embassy
> spokesman said that "we are making inquiries and have heard of a
> development in Surabaya" but he would not comment further.
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