Victim of ‘disgusting paedophile’ serving Australia’s longest sentence for child sex abuse tells of ‘lost decades’

In December, William “Rob” Gilfillan was found guilty of indecent assault and sexual penetration of a child under 16 at Traralgon high school in Gippsland in the 1980s. Photograph: Joel Carrett/AAP View image in fullscreen In December, William “Rob” Gilfillan was found guilty of indecent assault and sexual penetration of a child under 16 at Traralgon high school in Gippsland in the 1980s. Photograph: Joel Carrett/AAP Victim of ‘disgusting paedophile’ serving Australia’s longest sentence for child sex abuse tells of ‘lost decades’ Woman tells court ‘I lost my teenage self’ from abuse by teacher William ‘Rob’ Gilfillan, already in prison for offences against daughter Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast A woman who was repeatedly sexually assaulted in the 1980s by her high school PE teacher has told a court how the man’s actions resulted in her life being changed “negatively for decades”. In December, William “Rob” Gilfillan was found guilty of indecent assault of a person under 16 and sexual penetration of a child under 16. The five counts against two victims took place at Traralgon high school in Gippsland. Gilfillan, 69, appeared via video link from Barwon prison, where he is serving Australia’s longest sentence for child sex abuse offences against his daughter in a separate case in New South Wales. The Victoria county court heard he will be eligible for parole when he is 96. His defence counsel, Paul Kounnas, argued for a concurrent sentence because his client would be “very old” when he was released. Chief justice Amanda Chambers invited the victim to address the court after she indicated she wanted to read her victim impact statement aloud. “I lost my teenage self,” she said. “I lost those years of emotional and sexual development, and this changed my life negatively for decades. I lost decades on self hate, shame, sexual numbness, body dysmorphia, alcohol misuse [and] hiding my bulimia.” In her case, Gilfillan, whom she referred to as a “disgusting paedophile”, was found guilty of four counts of indecent assault of a person over 16. The court heard he used callipers to pinch intimate parts of her body under the pretence of preparation for a “slimmers weekend” camp. “I was ashamed for so many years and felt such guilt as I reported him at the time to stop him; no one spoke to me,” she said. A second victim, who was under 16 at the time of the offending, did not wish her victim impact statement to be read out in court, prosecutor Sandra McDougall said. Gilfillan was found guilty of sexual penetration of the 15-year-old, who was under his care and supervision in the school gymnasium. The prosecution submitted that Gilfillan’s role as their teacher was an aggravating feature of the offending. McDougall said that since 2016, Gilfillan has been serving a sentence imposed for offending after the events when he was a teacher at Traralgon. “Its only relevance to the present sentencing exercise is to demonstrate that Mr Gilfillan has not rehabilitated himself,” she said. Kounnas said a psychological assessment found his client still denied all charges against him. In the NSW district court in 2016, justice Sarah Huggett sentenced Gilfillan to a total prison term of 48 years, with a minimum non-parole period of 36 years – a sentence she acknowledged may exceed the remainder of his natural life. In sentencing remarks, Huggett said there was no evidence to suggest “even a modicum of remorse or insight” on his part, nor of a mental health disorder or impaired judgment that might explain the abuse. “Simply put, he did what he did for his own completely selfish, depraved and sadistic reasons,” she said. Between 2016, when he was convicted, and December 2025, the media was not allowed to name Gilfillan because he was facing charges before a jury. Gillifillan will be sentenced for the 1980s crimes on 16 June. Explore more on these topics Victoria Crime - Australia news Share Reuse this content