'Every dog has its day': Ex-Scouts leader Darren Vuolanne jailed for historic Illawarra child sex crimes

Illawarra man Darren Vuolanne, 52, was sentenced at Wollongong District Court on Wednesday.

A supporter of one of the victim's exclaimed "every dog has its day, you piece of sh--" from the back of the court room after Judge Megan Latham read out Vuolanne's penalty.

A jury found Vuolanne guilty of 11 charges related to his sexual offending against girls aged between seven to 15 following a week-long trial in May.

One of the victims told the jury Vuolanne repeatedly molested her as a child, saying he raped her "15 to 20 times".

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The woman said in 1997 Vuolanne told her "can I touch you there, I don't have one" before putting his finger inside of her vagina for about 10 seconds.

The court heard Vuolanne used the code words of "my way" to let the girl know he was going to molest her, and that he would coerce her into performing sexual acts in exchange for certain promised goods.

"He often would say to do it 'my way'," the victim said.

"On another specific occasion I wanted a [particular item]. He offered to buy them in return for 'two minutes my way'."

On another occasion, Vuolanne raped the girl while she put a pillow over her head as she felt "disgusted".

Two decades on, the victim disclosed the prolonged abuse she suffered as a child to her husband.

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In 2021, the woman confronted Vuolanne at his Illawarra address and secretly recorded the conversation where he was heard making admissions to his conduct against her.

The woman provided a statement to police and Vuolanne was arrested later that evening.

Vuolanne also digitally penetrated another victim, and also touched another victim's breasts over her clothing, the court heard.

Judge Latham said Vuolanne continues to deny the offences, with no evidence showing any remorse or mental illness, adding his upbringing was "happy and normal".

Vuolanne was handed a 16-year jail sentence backdated to September 2021.

A non-parole period of 10 years was fixed, making him eligible for release in December 2031.

Read more Illawarra court and crime stories here.

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