47-year-old Ashley Paul Griffith, once a trusted childcare worker, has been handed a life sentence after confessing to over 300 heinous acts against nearly 70 young girls.
His crimes, spanning from 2003 to 2022, unfolded in childcare centres across Queensland and internationally, marking him as one of Australia’s most depraved offenders.
During Friday’s sentencing in Brisbane District Court, Judge Paul Smith described the nature of Griffith’s crimes as “horrendous” and highlighted the profound breach of trust involved. Griffith, diagnosed with a “paedophilic disorder,” faces a non-parole period of at least 27 years due to his high risk of reoffending.
Griffith’s criminal activities came to light following his arrest in August 2022 by the Australian Federal Police.
Initially charged with over 1,600 offenses, many were later dropped, but he still pleaded guilty to 28 counts of rape, nearly 200 charges of indecent treatment of children, and various counts related to the production and distribution of child exploitation material.
The investigation into Griffith was bolstered by thousands of pieces of evidence including photos and videos he uploaded to the dark web. A breakthrough came when investigators recognised a unique pattern of bedsheets in the footage, which led them back to Griffith.
Among his victims were four girls from a childcare centre in Pisa, Italy, and 65 others from 11 different Brisbane locations. The impact on the victims was devastating, with emotional victim impact statements read in court. One victim, who had fond memories of Griffith as her “favourite teacher,” spoke of the betrayal and lifelong impact of his actions.
Parents expressed their anguish, with one parent lamenting, “(My daughter) loved you like an uncle and you used her like a toy.” Another parent shared the ongoing struggle to shield their child from the full horror of what happened.
The case has sparked calls for a thorough investigation into the oversight at childcare facilities, with families like one father pointing out the ongoing vulnerability of children in such settings. “Parents are walking their children into these centres today with a false sense of security,” he stated outside the court.
“Parents are walking their children into these centres today with a false sense of security,”
Absolutely true!
One pre-school on South Island put 3-4 year olds in adult make-up, and there was an ambulance parked at the pre-school all day long.
When the parents arrived, their children kept pointing to their genitals in distress, and the parents noticed rectal abrasions later during their child’s evening bath.
The suspected perps were seen around the town involved, but would stop what they were doing (ie shopping, pumping petrol, etc. ) and suddenly flee the scene away from the parents and children they had former contact with.
Of course, the kids were systematically punished for doing things at the pre-school which would NEVER had happened if the teachers were astute enough at paying attention ie stopping-up drains, overflowing toilets, children playing with actual handsaws, etc.
And, the woke feminazi staff would always try and blame the father(s) or male ‘partners’ for the targeted child’s adverse behaviours, citing ‘abuse’ that the staff had actually been doing!
This is when we decided to home-school after 5 months into the Year 1 Primary Grade, and got out of the system.
Several families dis-enrolled their children at the pre-school within 2 days, and never went to the cops, fearing that the system would be turned-in on them, and their already-distressed children would be removed and placed in CYFS’s foster (abusive) caregivers, who are paid by the government in a program which mirrors the CIA’s MK-ULTRA program.
And…IF you have a Special Needs / Autistic child, expect NOTHING to be done of offered by the MoE & MoH!
Beware also of those ‘specialists’ (ie SLT’s) who come to your home and profile you with secret files!
Mothers should be at home with their children. Fathers should make sure they can be.
I am sorry but men in childcare centres is just a big red flag for me. I would have removed my kids if there had been a male teacher.
School is different, no nappy changes necessary.
I agree, men should not be in child care.
You need therapy.
We noted that our child’s nappy hadn’t been changed all day, and when the few times it was, it was put on BACKWARDS by an ‘experienced FEMALE pre-school ‘teacher’…
Then, a choking incident…
Children losing fingers between an unprotected and covered door and door frame…!
Bottom line- don’t enroll in those places to begin with!!!
Government subsidies for ‘free pre-school / childcare’ needs to be paid directly to families of pre-school children so that Mum can stay home during that time!
Never forget the police attempted to cover this up and went after a whistleblower.