Nicolaas Ockert Bester, the man who sexually abused former Australian of the Year Grace Tame when she was a child, is unfit to face a court hearing because he has dementia, his lawyer has told a court.
The 72-year-old appeared in Hobart Magistrates Court on Monday for what was expected to be a two-day hearing over allegations he harassed Ms Tame on social media. He is accused of making public posts relating to Ms Tame in April, July and August 2022, and pleaded not guilty in March 2023 to three counts of using a carriage service to menace, harass or cause offence.
Bester was jailed in 2011 for sexually abusing Ms Tame when she was a 15-year-old student at the school where he taught, and for possessing child exploitation material.
His lawyer, Todd Kovacic, told the court his client had vascular dementia and that his fitness to face the hearing was in question. Mr Kovacic indicated that Bester's unfitness would 'almost certainly be conceded' based on medical assessments from both the defence and prosecution.
Magistrate Andrew McKee granted an adjournment to allow a decision on how to proceed. The matter is expected to return to court on 28 August. The Director of Public Prosecutions had requested more information about Bester's medical condition, and the court previously heard that Bester had suffered a 'medical episode'.
Ms Tame, who was not present in court on Monday but has attended on other occasions, was named Australian of the Year in 2021 and has become a prominent advocate for survivors of abuse.
