A prolific Sydney pedophile began a decades-long spree of abusing children within years of being convicted of assaulting a young boy.
Gregory James Druery, from Chipping Norton in Sydney's southwest, faced a sentencing hearing on Wednesday after pleading guilty to sexually and indecently assaulting eight young boys over 22 years.
Druery, now aged 51, befriended his young victims and their families between 1992 and 2014 through his involvement with a youth group at a Sydney Baptist church and his position as a baseball coach.
He also went to Vanuatu masquerading as a visiting Australian welfare worker, handing out toys to underprivileged boys whom he later molested.
Parramatta District Court heard that Druery had earlier undergone periodic detention and psychological counselling in the early 1990s after being convicted of assaulting a boy aged about 13.
But by 1992, Druery had begun preying on children again, with the abuse continuing until his arrest in May 2014.
Among his many offences were having sexual intercourse with a 14-year-old, touching a child's genitals and pulling down a child's pants.
All of his victims were aged between 12 and 15 at the time.
In a statement read to the Parramatta District Court, one victim said the abuse had left him embarrassed, ashamed and riddled with guilt.
The man said the abuse had damaged relationships with his loved ones, made him suspicious of others around his own children, and left him wishing he'd spoken up sooner to protect others from harm.
He said he now loathed thinking about playing junior baseball and could barely look at his wedding photos knowing that his abuser took them.
"I don't like to be left in the same room alone with my parents in case they bring it up," the man said.
"My wife has often described me as an emotionless rock; perhaps this is to do with keeping the incident to myself for so long.
"Looking back, I wish I had the moral courage to stand up and say what was happening was wrong."
Druery took to the witness box during his sentencing hearing to speak of his remorse.
He told the court he prayed every day that his victims and their families could be healed of the harm he'd inflicted on them.
"My heart is breaking ... I am so sorry for what I have done," Druery said.
"I have to face what I have done, I have to live with what I have done for the rest of my life."
Druery is due to be sentenced on February 19.
