On the way, he indecently assaulted the boy. At the park, no children were present, and after only a few minutes of play he told the boy they had to leave. The child immediately disclosed the assault to his mother.
Then, in 2017, he was convicted of offending against another boy he knew through a family connection.
On that occasion, he took the boy on a trip and suggested if he ever needed money he should ask. That sparked at least four incidents where he instructed the boy to perform sexual acts for money.
The latest allegations came to light in 2021 when another complainant came forward.
The jury heard Wilson knew the boy’s parents, who lived in a low-socio economic suburb, and would often be at their gatherings drinking alcohol.
The jury trial is being heard in the Whangārei District Court. Photo / NZME
The boy’s life was often chaotic and, as a trusted family friend, Wilson allegedly took the child on several outings around Whangārei and violated him repeatedly.
The complainant also alleges Wilson would offer him money, smokes and alcohol.
“This case is about Mr Wilson’s sexual behaviour against a child. He knew better, he had an interest and [a] sexual interest in [suppressed],” Annandale said in openings to the jury.
Wilson’s lawyer Chris Muston gave a brief opening statement and said the alleged offending did not happen.
“It’s very simple, that’s the issue,” Muston said.
Under cross-examination, Muston referred the complainant to statements he made in his evidential interview about a conversation he had with Wilson’s daughter.
In the conversation, the daughter had said people were trying to get her dad in trouble and asked the complainant whether he had ever done anything to him.
“I said ‘nah f*** off’ but I was just being respectful cause that was her dad,” the complainant had said.
Muston put to the man Wilson never sexually offended against him.
Shannon Pitman is a Whangārei-based reporter for Open Justice covering courts in the Te Tai Tokerau region. She is of Ngāpuhi/ Ngāti Pūkenga descent and has worked in digital media for the past five years. She joined NZME in 2023.
