From the outside, William Tan led a glamorous life. Now he faces dozens of sickening charges
William Wee Liat Tan called his elderly mother from a prison south-west of Brisbane early one November morning; Dozens of allegations of child abuse material hung over his mind.
He had an urgent request: to visit a website to delete one of his accounts – without reading anything.
“Will they let me do this?” her mother asked.
For several days, Tan begged her mother to close the profile. According to the Supreme Court documents, it is claimed that he tried to disrupt the course of justice in this way.
Police said the account the 48-year-old man tried to hide was just one of many he used to post horrific and graphic child abuse material.
In some cases, the material revealed in court documents was too extreme for investigators to write about.
From the outside, Tan was living a glamorous life. As co-founder of the Miss Oceania pageant, she presented a picture of opulence, posing next to Aston Martins and other high-performance cars in dozens of photos.
For years she networked with some of Queensland’s movers and shakers by attending invitation-only events and charity events. She shared her support for various charities, including those that help women escape violence.
He was photographed with former Queensland premier Campbell Newman, Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner, Gold Coast Mayor Tom Tate and champion boxer Jeff Horn.
Prosecutors say he appeared to be wealthy, successful and a respected member of society.
At the time Tan was searching for his mother, police were examining her data after raiding her properties in Fortitude Valley and Fitzgibbon. They found seven laptops, more than half a dozen phones and hard drives.
The allegations against him paint an unprintable picture of heresy.
According to court documents, some of the first alleged messages date back to 2019, in which Tan talked about a man who lured a young girl away from the mall and sexually assaulted her.
In an online conversation, Tan asked another person about the case and “how they could have done it better.”
Police believed Tan was referring to Sterling Mervyn Free, 27, who kidnapped a seven-year-old girl from the Kmart in Westfield North Lakes and sexually assaulted her in woodland before taking her to the shopping centre.
Police say the messages Tan sent spanned dozens of pages.
Tan allegedly wrote that he felt sexually aroused whenever he saw a little girl and that it was “difficult to hide this, especially in shopping malls and while travelling.”
Police said that in a private message between Tan and another user between January 2020 and June 2020, Tan wrote: “I like the idea that we can find a little girl at the mall and lure her back” and distributed child abuse material.
Police said Tan wrote in a private message thread between 2020 and 2022: “I run a rough child love and sex group. Are you interested? All the parents there believe in child rape and rough love.”
Many of the other alleged messages are too graphic to be published. Some contain references to violent attacks on babies.
According to court documents, Tan also discussed having a late-term abortion with another user and how they would abuse the fetus.
“I like the idea that we can find a little girl at the mall and lure her back.”
Allegation of online message from Tan
Some examples were so extreme that investigators found the content, such as messages about the murder of children and cannibalism, too disturbing to write about in detail.
Police said Tan had encouraged others to molest their own children on forums on several occasions.
It was alleged that Tan distributed child abuse material in a conversation with 36 participants between August and October last year. The forum included videos depicting the torture of children and women, including a toddler who was stomped on, lifted and hurled by her limbs against a wall before being threatened with a knife.
Meanwhile, Tan was helping manage the Miss Oceania pageants. It was less than a month before an event in November when attendees were suddenly told that the co-founder had been arrested.
Tickets for the show, scheduled for November 8 at the Sofitel in the Brisbane CBD, were selling for $250 when Tan was arrested on October 12.
Participants spent thousands of dollars on fees, pageants, and costumes; some were traveling interstate.
In between networking events and charity fundraising, there were regular online conversations to discuss logistics.
When a meeting was called without context, those who attended the demonstration recalled thinking it was nothing out of the ordinary.
It was at this meeting that women heard about Tan’s arrest.
Co-founder Lynn White eventually canceled the contest.
One attendee, who asked to remain anonymous to speak freely about the private meeting, said White appeared shocked as he broke the news. White told the women she wanted the event to go on, but the competitors were eventually refunded their $800 entry fee.
The participant described the news as devastating. He had met Tan many times and heard him talk about leadership and business at demonstration events.
One of the contest participants remembered Tan as a charismatic figure who gave inspiring speeches. “But I also had a bad feeling about it.”
Hearing about the arrest caused him to feel “cognitive dissonance.”
Another pageant participant, Belinda Rygier, said the pageant process and community were supportive after the allegations were made public.
Rygier remembered Tan as a charismatic figure who gave speeches to groups to motivate and inspire. “But I also had a bad feeling about it,” he said.
He said many in the performing community are still processing their emotions.
“People are in shock, we are truly shocked. We are so shocked, it’s incredible,” he said. “It’s that feeling of hearing a pin drop. The ‘holy shit’ silence, complete shock.”
Tan also had other business interests, including ownership of Sieverts Radiation Consulting. He was the Liberal candidate for Algester in 2006.
Since his arrest, people have expressed their shock on social media; one person recalled sitting next to Tan at a charity event for children trafficked for sexual exploitation.
Another wrote: “On your page you came across as charismatic, friendly and even someone who supports charities and promotes positivity and inspiration, but you turned out to be a huge disappointment.”
Tan’s case will return to court on March 20.
Anyone needing support can contact 1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732), the National Sexual Exploitation and Reparations Support Service 1800 211 028, Lifeline 13 11 14 and Kids Helpline 1800 55 1800.
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