Darlinghurst the Wall is the most infamous gay pickup strip in Sydney. There are probably others – but this 100m of sandstone wall has a unique synergy. It runs along the eastern boundary of the old Darlinghurst Gaol commencing at the rear of the Supreme Court of NSW.
Arron James Light ran away from his inner Sydney home when he was barely 15.
To support himself on the streets and have what police described as a “fun time”, he became a teenage prostitute working the infamous Wall at Darlinghurst.
He was "besotted" with former rugby league star Ian Roberts with whom he had sex; an inquest has been told.
He had intercourse with both Mr Roberts and another male the footballer lived with and slept "in the middle" of them.
Gay Rugby star Ian Roberts slept with underaged prostitute Arron Light.
Eureka Q / Australia
But in 1997, aged 17, he disappeared without trace after turning key witness to a special police task force investigating prominent pedophile rings in Sydney. The task force also went on to hunt down and extradite infamous pederast Robert “Dolly” Dunn from South America for successful prosecution.
For seven years, Arron’s disappearance remained a mystery. Then, 2004, workmen clearing a bush-covered vacant block at Sydenham for use as a park unearthed skeletal remains in a shallow grave bordering the Alexandria canal.
Arron had been stabbed at least six times in the chest. His killer wrapped his body in a tarpaulin before burying it. Police who viewed the scene believe his body would never have been found had it not been for the workmen.
DNA tests yesterday confirmed Arron’s identity to Newtown detectives, who informed his parents of their worst fears since they reported their son missing in December 1997.
Detective Inspector Ian Lynch said that Arron was crucial to a prosecution brief being prepared at the time against alleged members of the rings and was also an victim of pederasts.
He said charges against four men were dropped as a consequence of his sudden disappearance.
Arron’s allegations related to a prominent pedophile ring dubbed “Circle of Friends”. The group is also known to operate in Britain, where juveniles preyed on have also been murdered. Detective Inspectors were convinced his disappearance related to their investigations.
“Arron was known to frequent the Wall area of Darlinghurst and Darlinghurst Road as well as Kings Cross, Botany, Rosebery and Bourke Street, Darlinghurst, where he shared a place with a group of other people,” Detective Inspector Lynch said.
In October 2009, Frederick George Rix, 81, who were believed to be the key people of the pedophile ring that murdered Arron, encountered Ian Roberts at Glebe Coroner's Court where the circumstances of the death of 17-year-old Arron Light are being examined. The pair, who both had sex with underaged Arron, in front of journalists, accused each other of "pedophile" in an angry exchange.
