Qld ‘paedophile’ Catholic brother Francis Broph jailed

A Catholic brother who inflicted ‘sheer terror’ on vulnerable boys at a Queensland orphanage, sexually abusing nine of them, has been jailed for his historical crimes.

‘Your legacy disgusts me and every right-minded member of society,’ Brisbane District Court Judge William Everson told Francis Brophy on Monday.

The 87-year-old, who was found guilty by a jury of five offences and sentenced for more than 30 counts in total, sexually abused the orphans at BoysTown, near Beaudesert, between 1978 and 1983.

Catholic brother Francis Brophy inflicted ‘sheer terror’ on vulnerable boys at a Queensland orphanage, sexually abusing nine of them, has been jailed for his historical crimes

'Your legacy disgusts me and every right-minded member of society,' Brisbane District Court Judge William Everson told Francis Brophy (pictured) on Monday

‘Your legacy disgusts me and every right-minded member of society,’ Brisbane District Court Judge William Everson told Francis Brophy (pictured) on Monday

Judge Everson denounced him as ‘a cowardly, evil pedophile’ who masqueraded as a follower of God while inflicting lifelong damage on the children who were meant to be in his care.

He said Brophy presided over a ‘Gulag right in our midst’ that left some of his victims ravaged by nightmares and post-traumatic stress disorder as adults.

‘The combination of your depraved sexual offending and the terrifying violence you meted out makes your conduct particularly heinous,’ Judge Everson told him.

‘It is the sheer terror that you presented to the victims in the context of their complete and utter helplessness that places your conduct in a special category of seriousness.’

He sentenced Brophy to a head term of eight years behind bars but set a parole eligibility date for two years’ time.

There were tears in the public gallery as the court heard one of Brophy’s victims froze and endured ‘significant pain’ when he was sodomised by the brother, who took his vows in 1952 and retired in 1994.

Brophy presided over a 'Gulag right in our midst' that left some of his victims ravaged by nightmares and post-traumatic stress disorder as adults, the judge said

Brophy presided over a ‘Gulag right in our midst’ that left some of his victims ravaged by nightmares and post-traumatic stress disorder as adults, the judge said

Brophy, 87, was sentenced to eight years behind bars but he could be out in two on parole

Brophy, 87, was sentenced to eight years behind bars but he could be out in two on parole

A victim was also ‘viciously’ strapped for smoking, while another was punched in the stomach when he appeared to mock another brother.

As he walked away, Brophy laughed and told the winded boy: ‘You’re not as tough as you make out to be’.

In a statement issued on Monday afternoon, the De La Salle Brothers said ‘a member of the Order’ had been sentenced for crimes that amounted to a profound betrayal of the trust of children.

‘These actions have caused great pain and suffering and for that we are truly remorseful,’ it read.

 

Read more at DailyMail.co.uk