Dunedin-based David John Charteris (65) appeared in the Christchurch District Court yesterday after previously being found guilty at trial of seven charges of sexual violation by unlawful sexual connection and one of indecency with a boy.
After sentencing, his counsel, Anselm Williams, confirmed to the Otago Daily Times they would challenge the convictions in the Court of Appeal.
Charteris headed the southern region's Victim Support team and spent a decade at the organisation from 2008.
While the offending took place in 1999 and 2000, the organisation revealed yesterday it had been anonymously informed about the historical sexual abuse and chose to do nothing about it.
Chief executive Kevin Tso stressed the defendant was never employed in a client-contact role but conceded the organisation "could have handled this situation better".
He said the anonymous information passed on about Charteris should have been referred to police but was not.
"Since then, we have begun thoroughly reviewing our processes to prevent anything of this nature occurring again."
The victim took aim at Charteris in a statement read in court yesterday, which Judge Raoul Neave called "a powerful document".
"David knew from life experience I was easy pickings and yet he exploited that in the most despicable way," the victim said.
The abuse had resulted in "a life sentence of guilt, confusion, anger and turmoil".
The victim, who now had children of his own, had experienced significant mental health issues and distrust in others because of his childhood trauma.
Charteris, he said, must have known the positions of trust he held in the community would have acted as a barrier to him coming forward.
"My life stalled for an extended period of time," he said.
Charteris came into his victim's life after the boy's parents split up in the late 1990s.
He helped the mother with childcare and took her son on excursions.
The defendant betrayed her trust "in the most terrible way", the judge said.
The pair hit it off "from the word go", Charteris said at trial.
But it was not long before the man's attention took a sexual turn.
Through 1999, the boy stayed overnight at his abuser's Christchurch home several times, which was when the violations began.
"Most days that I saw him privately involved at the very least ... skin on skin, you know, touch, masturbation, kissing, what was a very, very common occurrence," the victim said at trial in March.
He estimated he was violated in the most painful way up to a couple of dozen times.
There were other trips - several to the Waimakariri River and one to Banks Peninsula - where Charteris abused the boy after finding isolated areas where they would not be disturbed.
The final indecency came when he joined the family on a New Year's camping trip to Golden Bay.
Charteris slept in a tent with the victim and another boy.
With adults sleeping just metres away, he performed lewd acts on him and enticed the same from him.
"I remember comments like, you know, that this is naughty or our secret or exciting, that sort of thing - certainly not the case for me," the victim said at trial.
Five years after the months-long period of abuse, the boy's mother found out what had happened and a police complaint came shortly afterwards.
It was 11 years later that the victim was interviewed again by police and the allegations were levelled at Charteris.
Mr Williams confirmed his client continued to deny committing the repeated violations.
Judge Neave said the fact the victim's mother turned to Charteris would "haunt her for the rest of her life".
He said Charteris would not be released by the Parole Board until he acknowledged his offending.
