Karen Iles: Brave woman who was ‘gang raped’ by notorious surf gang reveals how police failed her
A woman who was ‘raped’ by a notorious surf gang when she was 14 told how her desperate pleas for justice went unanswered.
Karen Iles, 43, was barely a teenager when she was pushed into a room and repeatedly sexually assaulted by a group of 15 men nearly twice her age.
She and a friend had traveled from Gosford in NSW to Queensland’s Gold Coast for a family holiday they planned to spend on the beach in their brand new bikinis.
Unbeknownst to the girls, members of a notorious “surfing gang” were also staying at the Rainbow Commodore Holiday apartments in October 1993.
Ms Iles, now a lawyer, said the group of teenage boys and young men hung out around her in the pool before inviting her to their room for lunch.
“I now recognize that what happened to me was classic grooming behavior that any pedophile would use with a child,” she shared The project on Wednesday evening.
Karen Iles, 43, (pictured) was barely a teenager when she was pushed into a room in 1993 and repeatedly sexually assaulted by a group of men nearly twice her age.
One of the oldest men took her into a bedroom where he pushed her back and began aggressively kissing her on the bed.
Despite her repeatedly telling him “no” and “that hurts,” the young man continued to attack her as the rest of the gang poured into the room to watch.
She claims the men took turns abusing her, and recalls the older men calling the 15 and 16-year-old boys “virgins” because they didn’t get involved.
“They were very orchestrated and methodical,” Ms. Iles recalled news.com.au.
“I can remember thinking to myself there were too many guys in the room and I wouldn’t be able to get out.
“So I closed my eyes and thought, ‘I hope it’s over as soon as possible.'”
When she was finally allowed to leave, the dazed and confused 14-year-old ran out of the room to rejoin her friend and take a shower.
Ms. Iles did not tell her parents about the alleged abuse, but came home a different girl who no longer felt the same passion for her schoolwork, sports or music.
Ms Iles (pictured) says the group of teenage boys and young men who raped her began loitering around her at the pool before inviting her to their room for lunch
Known as a studious and well-behaved teenager, the schoolgirl began to hang out with the “naughty” girls in school who misbehaved and used drugs.
When she was 16, Mrs. Iles thought about leaving school and working in a café. At 17 and 18 she developed anorexia, wore dirty clothes and shaved her head.
Growing increasingly suspicious, her parents eventually leafed through her diary, coming across a note where she had described the horror of the alleged abuse.
They told her that the guys responsible “could get into a lot of trouble,” but Ms Iles said she still blamed herself and didn’t want to get them in trouble.
Her perspective changed during an International Women’s Day march in 2004.
Surrounded by other brave women, Ms. Iles said she found the courage to walk into Newtown police station armed with whatever evidence she had.
Known as a studious and well-behaved teen, the schoolgirl (pictured) began to sit with the “naughty” girls at school who misbehaved and took drugs after she endured the rapes
“I gave the exact location, the exact year, the exact month. I gave the name of the gang, physical descriptions, the names of a fellow victim and a witness, I also handed over my childhood diary, and that diary was never found,” she said.
Ms Iles was told a joint investigation would be launched by Sydney’s Redfern Police and Queensland’s Coolangatta Police, but it soon stalled.
Her case was forgotten due to a lack of co-operation from the NSW police, with Ms Iles not learning until decades later that her case had been closed after only a week.
She spent nearly 20 years desperately persuading the police to investigate before being caught off guard by yet another devastating update.
In 2018, Queensland Police said her original 15-page statement had been shredded.
She was “devastated” after learning her business had been closed for over a decade and was struggling with suicidal thoughts.
The joint investigation into her allegations was closed due to a lack of co-operation from NSW Police. Mrs. Iles discovered decades later that her business had closed after just one week
Three years later, in 2021, a copy of her file was found by NSW Police, who at the time gave no explanation as to why it had suddenly surfaced.
Nearly two decades after she first made a statement about her horrific experience, Ms Iles was invited to meet with police in December 2021.
“The trauma of the assaults was one thing,” she said.
“But the trauma of dealing with the police and our legal system is something completely different. In my case, that trauma of dealing with the police is much worse if you can believe it than the trauma of the gang rapes I endured.”
She has now launched one petition for new laws that will hold officers accountable to thoroughly investigate serious crimes like hers.
Ms Iles was ‘devastated’ after finding out her business had been closed for over a decade. She is now pushing for new laws that hold police officers accountable for proper investigations
“I ask the politicians and the attorneys general in our country to create a legally binding minimum standard of investigation,” she said.
‘So if someone goes in and reports a serious crime, we as a society know exactly how the police are going to investigate it.’
Ms Iles says the laws will introduce minimum standards that police officers must meet to ensure investigations are properly conducted.
“Victims and their families are abandoned every day by police forces in this country,” she said.
By Wednesday evening, the petition had received nearly 35,000 signatures.
Lifeline 13 11 14
Kids Helpline 1800 55 1800 (for people aged 5 to 25)
Domestic Violence Counseling Service 1800 RESPECT on 1800 737 732