Man linked to Adelaide youth detention facility accused of sexually abusing 29 victims over two decades
Posted Thu 10 Sep 2026 at 11:51amThu 10 Sep 2026 at 11:51amThu 10 Sep 2026 at 11:51am, updated Thu 10 Sep 2026 at 12:29pmThu 10 Sep 2026 at 12:29pmThu 10 Sep 2026 at 12:29pm
In short:
A 73-year-old man accused of allegedly sexually abusing 29 people — many of them children at the time — has been arrested following an SA Police investigation into historical abuse at SA government care facilities.
Police said the man was not a government employee but “had access” to the Magill Training Centre, and was charged with 55 offences allegedly committed over more than two decades.
What’s next?
The man is expected to appear in court today.
An investigation into abuse at an Adelaide youth detention centre has led to the arrest of a 73-year-old man, who will face court accused of dozens of alleged sexual offences — many of them against children.
The man, from Adelaide’s western suburbs, is accused of crimes against 29 survivor-victims over more than two decades, and has been charged with 55 offences.
Police said the man had access to the now-closed Magill Training Centre but was not a government employee.
They said many of the victims were children at the time of the alleged offending.
Charges against the man including multiple counts of rape, unlawful sexual intercourse, sexual abuse of a child, gross indecency and indecent assault, police said.
Police said the man was arrested this morning by detectives from Task Force Libero, which was established to investigate allegations of historical child sexual abuse linked to government care facilities including Magill Training Centre.
They said the investigation had commenced in 2023, and the man’s arrest was the first by the task force.
Assistant Commissioner Stuart McLean said he could not disclose the capacity in which the man attended the centre.
“We’ll be alleging today this man had access to the Magill Training Centre — however, he was not an employee of the centre nor was he a government employee,”
he said.
“The nature of the accused’s work will be the subject of the matters before the court today and application for suppression orders, so I’m not in a position to elaborate.”
Police said the man was expected to appear in the Adelaide Magistrates Court today.
The assistant commissioner said the matter demonstrated SA Police’s commitment to investigating abuse allegations regardless of the passage of time.
“The investigations are ongoing and complex but I do anticipate further arrests,” he said.
“I am very proud of the work of the team at Task Force Libero.
“This is a significant body of work, a complex, protracted investigation, and their investigative effort has led us to a position today where we say we have sufficient evidence to bring the matter before the court.”
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