Preps in sex attack claims
POLICE are investigating allegations that five-year-old boys have been sexually assaulted by other prep class children at a Cairns state school.
Parents have told The Cairns Post they have removed their children from the school – which can not be named for
legal reasons – after the principal failed to act against the young abusers.
Education Queensland has confirmed it is aware of the complaints and had referred them to police but would not comment further.
One parent, who cannot be identified in order to protect the victims, yesterday said his son was one of three known victims, but there could be more.
"Our son has been totally out of control since it happened," he said.
"We’ve had to get a counsellor to help."
The parents say two boys from the prep class were stopping other boys in the school toilets at lunchtime and making them pull down their pants.
Other allegations include one of the boys exposing himself and urinating on other students.
Another parent said her son was a target of the offending boys and also has seen an assault.
"He started asking us to pick him up at lunchtime," she said.
"Then he was point-blank refusing to go to school.
"We didn’t understand what was happening."
The woman said her son was "interrogated" by the school principal for more than an hour when he spoke up about the assault.
Although the teachers started more closely supervising the boys toilets after they were made aware of the problem, the boys responsible for the alleged attacks took their behaviour to the playground.
"The principal hasn’t informed any of the other parents about it," one of the mothers said.
"The parents need to know.
"There are a lot of kids they (the offending boys) have access to and they’re just pulling them into the bushes, basically." An Education Queensland spokeswoman yesterday said the department had referred the complaints of sexual assault to the police.
"The matter is being investigated by the QPS Child Protection and Investigation Unit and the department is unable to comment further," the spokeswoman said.
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Attack claims: A man and his son have claimed sexual abuse is happening in the prep class of a Cairns school.
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