Friday 29 May 2009

Mario Lundy


Police said yesterday that members of the Jersey "establishment" were suspects.

"Possible suspects were in positions of authority in the public sector at the time of the alleged abuse," police chief Graham Power said. An angry deputy chief police officer Lenny Harper yesterday vowed to "hunt down" the abusers and warned: "You will be made to answer for your crimes."

Mr Harper said his inquiry had been hampered by poor records. Yesterday the names of those running the home were revealed.

Police refused to say if any of them are being treated as suspects, or have been interviewed as witnesses.

Among them was Mario Lundy, Jersey's present education director, who worked at Haut de la Garenne for two years. He refused to comment yesterday. Another was John Rodhouse, who was director of education in 1974.

Detectives believe pedophiles visited the children's home for 30 years before it closed in 1986. It had housed more than 1000 children since proper records were kept in the 1950s.

Former resident Cyril Turner said he managed to escape the abuse at Haut de la Garenne by climbing through a window.

The father of four, who now lives on the island in St Clement, stayed at the home for a few weeks and said that when children went missing, the others were told they had "run off and emigrated".

Source