Childs remains discovered in 'abuse' care home

IT IS the millionaires' playground famous for having a level of crime so low that one detective was able to solve most of it single-handed.

The Channel Island of Jersey will be forever etched in the collective memory as the home of unorthodox TV cop Jim Bergerac.But the tiny island, a mere nine miles long by five miles wide, has long hidden a ghastly secret linked to the fictional police station in which Bergerac worked.

The discovery of a body at Haut de la Garenne – a former children's home which doubled as the 'Bureau des Etrangers' featured in the TV drama which ran from 1981 to 1991 – has cast a shadow over Jersey's image as a benign holiday destination.

The discovery yesterday of part of a child's body is the latest twist in an investigation which began undercover in late 2006 and involves a number of historical allegations of sexual and physical abuse of children said to have occurred on premises run by the state or voluntary groups.

And although the investigation is at an early stage, police officers are already openly admitting this could be just the start of unimaginable horror to come. The search of Haut de la Garenne was prompted by information received from some of the victims and witnesses spoken to as part of the historic child abuse inquiry.

The investigation began in November 2006 after Jersey Police noticed links between victims in a string of sexual offence convictions involving officers from the island's Sea Cadet Corps, and cases from several island institutions – including Haut de la Garenne.

The alleged physical and sexual abuse against children is believed to date back to the 1960s, and attacks at Haut de la Garenne may have taken place over three decades, although police said the bulk of them focus on the 1970s and 1980s. Built at the turn of the 20th century, Haut de la Garenne served as a school and as an orphanage before becoming part of Jersey's childcare provision. Until its closure in the 1980s, it housed up to 60 young people with special needs.

It is now a 100-bed youth hostel, run by the YHA, attracting tourists keen to explore the only part of Great Britain to be occupied by the Nazis. Police said more than 140 potential victims had contacted a helpline since they went public about the investigation at the end of last year. Many distraught victims were said to have expressed anger that their complaints had not been heeded at the time.

From those contacts, within a month police had identified more than 70 alleged victims, and at least 20 suspects. At that point, faced with such a major inquiry, Jersey Police requested specialist help from the UK. Deputy Chief Police Officer Lenny Harper admitted to the BBC in December that the allegations ranged "from pretty severe physical and mental abuse right through to the most serious sexual crimes that you can imagine". "We will of course be looking to see if there are any criminal implications into why these matters weren't dealt with, and why they weren't brought before the courts," he said.The case has echoes of the child abuse committed in Scottish care homes such as Kerelaw, in Stevenston, Ayrshire.

It was claimed as many as 40 staff members at Kerelaw preyed on vulnerable youngsters, sometimes with the full knowledge of co-workers and superiors, amid a culture of fear and collusion. Kerelaw opened in the 1970s, originally only for boys, but later taking girls. Some youngsters had committed offences; others were sent there because of unruly behaviour or difficulties at home. The school was closed after an investigation by the Care Commission and education inspectors in 2004. Former art teacher Matthew George, 57, and care worker John Muldoon, 53, were brought to justice in 2006, facing charges going back more than 30 years. George was jailed for 10 years for sexually or physically abusing several boys and a girl, while Muldoon was given a 30-month prison term on indecency charges involving three girls.

Edinburgh High Court heard of 'rag-dolling' assaults on unruly pupils by pushing and shaking them, and of how George liked to practise martial arts on the youngsters.
He also forced boys to perform sexual acts on him.

Reports last week suggested that the floodgates are set to open for compensation awards to thousands of abuse victims, with a legal ruling which will overturn a ban on historical claims. A lawyer representing about 1,000 victims of historic abuse in children's homes in Scotland said he "fully expects" a "time-bar" rule to be swept aside following a House of Lords ruling last month. Cameron Fyfe, who said that on his books he has 1,000 former children's home residents claiming abuse, added he expects the time bar north of the Border to be overturned at the Court of Session next month.