The Australian - Ean Higgins | December 17, 2007
FEDERAL police are expected within days to arrest an elderly former Marist Brothers teacher over allegations he sexually abused at least 11 students in Canberra over a period spanning the 1970s to the 90s.
Brother John Kostka is understood to be preparing to leave his Marist Brothers retirement farm in NSW's southern highlands to give himself up to the AFP officers in Canberra.
The move follows a tip-off to police by Canberra lawyer and former NSW detective Jason Parkinson, who is leading his own investigation into claims of pedophilia at two Catholic private schools in the ACT.
Brother Kostka's lawyer, Greg Walsh, yesterday told The Australian: "We will co-operate with the police investigation into these matters and we will surrender to them in the ACT."
Mr Walsh said that while he did not specifically know the AFP's intentions, it was "as plain as the nose on your face" that his client was going to be arrested when he presented in Canberra.
Mr Parkinson said it was likely Brother Kostka, understood to be in his mid to late 70s, decided to surrender to the AFP to avoid being arrested by NSW police and held in detention, pending extradition to the ACT.
Mr Parkinson, the principal of Porters Lawyers, has issued Marist College with notifications that he has 11 clients ready to sue the school, claiming Brother Kostka sexually abused them. The allegations against Brother Kostka are the latest Mr Parkinson has pursued involving what are now four former teachers at Daramalan College and Marist College in Canberra. Mr Parkinson's firm has also filed notifications involving Paul John Lyons, who abused boys at both Marist College and later Daramalan, and two other unnamed teachers at Marist College.
The total number of notifications Porters Lawyers has filed between the two schools of alleged sexual abuse by the four teachers involves 33 male former students, three of whom claim to have been abused at different times by both Lyons and Brother Kostka.
Most of the cases have emerged since July when The Australian revealed details of the activities of Lyons at Daramalan. Mr Parkinson has settled two cases against Daramalan College for alleged abuse by Lyons, who was still teaching there in 2000 when he committed suicide after being charged with indecently assaulting one Daramalan student. Lyons had confessed to police that he had sexually abused the 15-year-old in 1989.
Mr Parkinson said the 11 former Marist College students had a consistent story of alleged abuse by Brother Kostka.