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Offender Databases Clara Lichtwark

Clara May Lichtwark

Alias

.

Offences

Indecnt assault and rape of two Hamilton boys and a girl aged between 7 and 10 between 1974 and 1977
Nine charges of indecent assault and doing an indecent act on a boy under 16

Victims

.

Offender Affiliations

Roy Leach

Gang affiliations

none known

Age

Born 1941

Current Location

unknown

Parole/Release Dates

Sentenced to four years in November 1998
Released July 2001?

Background
From a Waikato Times article 12/11/1998
A Hamilton couple in their 50s have been jailed for indecently assaulting and sodomising children. In the Hamilton District Court yesterday, Judge Robert Wolff sentenced Roy Neville Leach, 55, to 10 years' jail on 25 charges including sodomy, indecently assaulting a boy under 16, doing an indecent act on a girl under 12 and attempted rape. His de facto wife at the time of the offences, Clara May Lichtwark, 57, was jailed for four years on nine charges of indecent assault and doing an indecent act on a boy under 16. The offences occurred between 1974 and 1977 when Leach and Lichtwark had befriended the parents of their three victims -- two boys and a girl -- who were aged between 7 and 10 at the time.

Judge Robert Wolff said while Lichtwark claimed to be only a party to the offences and was under the domineering influence of Leach, she "obviously had an interest in sexual matters concerning children as well". The couple had previously been found guilty in a District Court jury trial, which was held in closed court because of the nature of the offences. In what Judge Wolff described as "predatory behaviour", Leach and Lichtwark would abuse the children when they were alone with them. He said Leach had preyed on young members of an already vulnerable and dysfunctional family and had treated them as instruments for his sexual gratification. The long-term effects on the victims were "significant", especially for one of the male victims who had become a sexual offender. The couple had relied on the vulnerability of their victims, who were unlikely to be believed and who remained silent because they had nowhere to turn.

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Corrections and Additional Information
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