North shore teacher allegedly sexually abused child on his Pittwater yacht

Detailed summary

The former teacher is accused of repeatedly abusing five young girls including on the grounds of a north shore school where he taught.

A former teacher on Sydney’s upper north shore allegedly molested five children at home, school and on his yacht over nearly three decades.

A court heard Rick Jarvis* taught high school from the 1980s until his 2011 firing over alleged inappropriate relationships with students.

The 75-year-old is accused of sexually abusing a year nine student on school grounds as well as three grandchildren and a family friend on his yacht, at his house and in his car. He allegedly discussed the allegations with two accusers and encouraged them to delete correspondence.

Documents released by the NSW Supreme Court following Jarvis’ failed bail bid revealed details of the 10 charges to which he has pleaded not guilty.

The Herald has used pseudonyms for the man and his alleged victims to protect the complainants’ identities.

Jarvis allegedly abused family friend Kate* 20 to 30 times when she was aged 5 to 11, mostly during sleepovers at his house and his Pittwater-moored yacht.

According to the Crown case statement, Jarvis would take Kate to her bed earlier than other children and tickle her before abusing her. She did not realise this was wrong until a school lecture on inappropriate touching years later.

The Crown alleged Jarvis also tried to touch Kate’s thigh and ask about her sexual relationships during driving lessons. After one session, he allegedly emailed Kate “confessing his love for her and telling her he couldn’t listen to her talk about other boys”, stating their lessons had to end.

While teaching at an upper north shore school, Jarvis offered support to bullied year nine student Sarah*. He’d call her “pretty”, “nice” and “special” and often spent lunch breaks alone with her, the court heard.

Opening of the article, excerpted from The Sydney Morning Herald. To read the rest, open the article on the publisher's site.