Man held valid WWCC check for years after arrest for accessing child abuse material
Wergaia elder Ronald Marks, a prominent Horsham man, was convicted in the city's Magistrates' Court on Wednesday where he pleaded guilty to accessing child abuse material between 2012 and 2021.
The 74-year-old was fined $7,500, and ordered to report to Victoria Police for the next eight years.
The ABC now understands that Marks, who was arrested in 2021, held a valid WWCC until he was charged in January 2025.
During those four years he attended kindergartens to educate students on cultural issues.
A Victoria Police spokesperson said detectives began investigating Marks in 2021, and his physical WWCC card was seized. The Department of Justice was also notified.
However, under the current system, a person can be arrested over child-related offences and still hold a valid WWCC.
It's not until they are formally charged or convicted that their WWCC might be suspended or cancelled.
Yarriambiack Shire Council's chief executive officer Tammy Smith told the ABC that gap was a huge flaw in the system.
The ABC revealed this week that the state's Department of Government Services (DGS) had completed an initial review into Victoria's WWCC system.
Currently in Victoria, a WWCC can only be revoked following criminal charges or a regulatory finding.
A spokesperson for the Victorian government told the ABC it relied on alerts from Victoria Police or other authorities to action a WWCC suspension.
The government said it planned to modify the system following its review, with changes due to be implemented in August.
Until August last year, Marks was contracted through his personal business, Wergaia Industries, to lead kindergarten cultural awareness programs as part of the School Readiness Program.
According to business records, Marks' ABN was cancelled on August 20, 2024.
Ms Smith said the council only became aware of Marks' criminal conduct this week following media reports of his conviction.
She said Yarriambiack Shire had no idea Marks was arrested in 2021 or charged in January this year, and confirmed council staff had sighted a physical WWCC in October last year.
Following the revelations, Ms Smith said the council commenced an internal investigation and found Marks held a valid WWCC when he was contracted to provide the kindergarten program.
The ABC spoke with multiple organisations that contracted Marks. All had sighted a WWCC they believed to be valid as late as November 2024.
Elicia Napoli, CEO of Emerge Early Years Services, a non-for-profit that operates kindergarten and day-care programs across the Wimmera region, raised concerns about the failure to suspend WWCCs of people under investigation for child-related offences.
"There are risks to children, families, educators, community if that doesn't happen," Ms Napoli said.
She told the ABC that cultural education was an important part of the curriculum and would continue.
In a statement posted online, Barengi Gadjin Land Council Aboriginal Corporation (BGLC), the body representing traditional owners of the area, said it was "shocked and appalled" by the news.
"Upon learning of the conviction, we immediately terminated all services provided by Mr Marks and launched a full review of his past involvement with our programs," BGLC chair Chris Harrison said.
Mr Harrison said BGLC was undertaking a "full safeguarding review" and would be offering support to staff and community.
The council is working with BGLC to remove and replace a giant silo art installation featuring the Wergaia elder's face at Sheep Hills.
"Both Yarriambiack Shire and Barengi Gadjin Land Council representatives agree that ensuring and supporting the safety of children is of the utmost importance, and therefore the image of Mr Marks on the Sheep Hills Silo should be removed as a matter of priority," Ms Smith said.
"The council has engaged with the artist who commissioned the artwork, and we are collaborating with both the artist and Barengi Gadjin Land Council representatives to begin work on the redesign of the silo art."
Yarriambiack Shire Council said it hoped to replace Marks' face on the artwork later this month.
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