NSW: Absconded pedophile handed himself in to police

AAP General News (Australia)
12-19-2008
NSW: Absconded pedophile handed himself in to police

By Bonny Symons-Brown

SYDNEY, Dec 19 AAP - A convicted pedophile has surrendered to NSW authorities six days
after ditching his electronic monitoring anklet and fleeing home detention.

Troy Myers was on parole and living in a community offender residence in Sydney's south-west
after serving four years in jail for the aggravated sexual assault of a person under 16.

He bolted from the Campbelltown residence on Sunday, allegedly removing his monitoring
device after Department of Corrective Services staff told police he had recorded a blood
alcohol reading of 0.119, contravening his parole.

Corrective Services personnel delivered the 28-year-old man to Campbelltown police
at 3.30pm (AEDT) on Friday after his family convinced him to surrender.

Corrective Services Commissioner Ron Woodham said the department's Community Compliance
Group (CCG) had worked around the clock on the case.

"With the support of my officers in the community compliance team, this offender's
family convinced him to give himself up," Mr Woodham said in a statement.

It was the third time Myers has breached his parole since being released from prison
in September, Mr Woodham alleged.

"On the first two occasions, Myers was taken back to court, but magistrates decided
to again release him," he said.

"This was after CCG officers had conducted urine analysis tests on him and found the
drug ice in his system."

The NSW Opposition accused Corrective Services of jeopardising public safety by not
revealing Myers was missing until Thursday when NSW police appealed for public assistance
in finding him.

"It's very odd and unacceptable that it's taken five days for the Corrective Services
Department to make this public," legal affairs spokesman Greg Smith told reporters in
Sydney on Friday.

"A pedophile out on the loose, who's been said by police to be dangerous, should always
be the subject of an urgent warning to parents and to other people that he's to be detained
or to be avoided and police are to be alerted.

Mr Smith said there was a culture of cover-up and secrecy within the Corrective Services
Department, but Mr Woodham said his department passed the matter on to police within two
hours of Myers' breach.

"There is no cover-up in this matter or in any other matter and I reject his ridiculous
claims," Mr Woodham said.

Police said officers responded immediately once the Myers matter was reported to them.

"Once the arrest warrant had been obtained by Corrective Services, and after a number
of legitimate investigative avenues proved fruitless, police made a public appeal to find
him," a spokeswoman for NSW police said in a statement.

Mr Smith said tougher release conditions for sex offenders were needed, along with
more parole officers.

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