Court bans sex attacks kirk elder from being alone with women

A CHURCH elder who carried out numerous sex attacks on elderly parishioners has been banned from being alone with women.

Ronald Allstaff, 73, carried out more than 20 sex attacks on members of the congregation, including an 89-year-old woman who had to fight him off.

But a sheriff let Allstaff walk free yesterday after telling a court he did not think his persistent sex attacks amounted to “serious” sexual harm.

Allstaff, who was formerly an RNLI volunteer, was ordered to carry out 225 hours of unpaid work and placed under social work supervision for three years.

He was also put under a conduct requirement banning him from being alone with any female other than his wife or daughter. He was banned from working unless he gets social work approval, and he is not allowed to enter any new intimate domestic relationship without permission.

Allstaff, who is married and had been an elder at the Perthshire church for several years, targeted vulnerable members of the congregation he was supposed to be helping.

At Perth Sheriff Court, Sheriff William Wood placed Allstaff, from Bridge of Earn, Perthshire, on the sex offenders register for three years.

Sheriff Wood said Allstaff had minimised his offending when speaking to social workers and had even tried to blame his victims for the incidents.

“These were clearly elderly ladies who trusted you to help them out and you abused that trust,” he said. “They lived alone. One was significantly older than you.

“You have owned up to repeated offending of this type.” However, he rejected the Crown’s move for a Sexual Offences Prevention Order and ruled the sexual harm caused by Allstaff was not serious.

Allstaff was initially charged with sexually assaulting three women but admitted offences against two of them after the court heard the third had died since reporting him.

He admitted sexually assaulting and pushing an 89-year-old woman on three occasions between May 1 and November 24 last year.

He also admitted carrying out several sex attacks on a 72-year-old woman between April 1 and November 30 last year. A charge relating to the third woman, now deceased, was dropped by the Crown.

Fiscal depute Michael Sweeney told the court: “He is retired and carries out duties as a church elder. Through his position with the church he is allowed by parishioners into their property to ensure their welfare and act as a support mechanism.

“Through his work with the church he knows the complainers.” Mr Sweeney said some parishioners were paying Allstaff money to carry out small jobs for them.

One victim eventually broke down and told another church member. It then emerged he had been carrying out identical attacks on another member of the congregation.

She described how Allstaff regularly “pounced” on her from behind and had to be pushed off as he told her: “It’s just a bit of fun, you like it.”

Cliff Culley, defending, said Allstaff had never been in trouble before and it was “unusual” he had started offending at his age.

He added: “He appreciates the shame it has caused him and his family and he has had difficulty in coming to terms with that.”

These were clearly elderly ladies who trusted you