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About 1,200 families person been urged by constabulary successful Australia to person their children tested for infectious diseases aft a kid attraction idiosyncratic successful Melbourne was charged with aggregate intersexual battle offenses againgst 8 children.
Joshua Brown, 26, was charged with much than 70 offenses, including kid rape and attempted rape and possession of kid intersexual maltreatment material, the Victoria Police said successful a statement Tuesday.
"The astir important happening for our investigators was that we needed to place the victims involved," Acting Commander Janet Stevenson of the Victoria Police's Crime Command said Tuesday. "These are immoderate of the astir susceptible members of our assemblage and the conversations constabulary person had to person with their families were nary uncertainty beingness changing successful the worst imaginable way."
Victoria authorities Police Deputy Commissioner Wendy Steendam, center, acting Police Commander Janet Stevenson, left, and Victoria Premier Jacinta Allan, look astatine a quality league successful Melbourne, Australia, July 1, 2025.
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The charges subordinate to 8 alleged victims from 1 kid attraction centre successful the Melbourne suburb of Point Cook, betwixt April 2022 and January 2023, but authorities fearfulness much children whitethorn person been affected. Brown worked astatine much than 20 kid attraction centers successful the portion betwixt 2017 and his apprehension successful May 2025, according to the police.
Detectives are investigating, "as a priority," grounds of imaginable further offenses by Brown during his clip astatine different kid attraction halfway successful the Melbourne suburb of Essendon.
In total, immoderate 2,600 families whose children attended the 2 institutions during Brown's employment person been contacted, with authorities recommending 1,200 children beryllium tested for definite diseases owed to the "manner of the alleged offending," authorities wellness authorities said.
"As a precaution, we are recommending that immoderate children acquisition investigating for infectious diseases owed to a imaginable vulnerability hazard successful that period," Victoria Chief Health Officer Christian McGrath said astatine a news conference connected Tuesday. "We bash judge it's a debased risk, but we privation to connection this to supply assurance to the parents astir the wellness and wellbeing of their children."
McGrath didn't specify which diseases the wellness section had recommended investigating for, but said they could beryllium treated with antibiotics.
The constabulary said they judge Brown acted alone, and lone wrong the authorities of Victoria. He had a valid certification to enactment with children successful the state, and was not known to constabulary anterior to his apprehension successful May, aft detectives discovered helium had kid maltreatment material.
Top Victoria authorities official, Premier Jacinta Allan, said successful a statement Tuesday that she was "sickened by these allegations of abuse. They are shocking and distressing."
"My bosom breaks for those families who are surviving each parent's worst nightmare," she added. "As a genitor I tin lone ideate the unbearable symptom and distress the affected families are feeling."
Brown, who has been successful custody since May and has yet to participate a plea to the charges, is owed to look successful the Melbourne Magistrates Court connected Sept. 15.
Frank Andrews is simply a CBS News writer based successful London.
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