As flyers attacking members of the LGBTIQA+ communities continue to be distributed across Perth, and police appear hamstrung by the lack of vilification laws in the state, Gregory Helleren has shared his experience of being targeted by the hate campaign.

Warning: This report contains details of harassment, stalking and offensive statements that some readers may find upsetting.

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Helleren is the co-chair of the City of Perth’s LGBTIQA+ Advisory Group and a board member at Pride WA. Last year he served as the organisation’s secretary.

For over a year, tiny flyers have appeared in mailboxes across suburbs throughout the city, featuring photos of local community members alongside outrageous claims. The flyers accuse people of being trafficked as sex slaves, drugging youth, performing medical experiments, sexually abusing people, and having access to illegal drugs supposedly known only to the LGBTIQA+ community.

The flyer featuring Gregory Helleren accuses him of being a pedophile.

Speaking to OUTinPerth, Helleren said he first became aware of the defamatory accusation last year when a friend told him that one of their colleagues had received an email containing his photo and the baseless claim. The email came from a Proton Mail account, a service known for its encryption and difficulty to trace.

After considering it, Helleren decided to ignore the message. As someone with a public profile, he said he occasionally receives unusual messages.

Later, he became aware flyers were being distributed across the city, turning up in letterboxes in Victoria Park, Highgate, Subiaco, Maylands, and as far away as Gosnells. Then a new flyer in the series appeared—this time featuring Gregory’s face, lifted from his social media, alongside the accusation that he was a pedophile and that local organisations had been funding his trips to Southeast Asia.

“I was made aware of the flyers by my brother, who has a business office in Highgate, and he had received a flyer in his letterbox,” Helleren said.

He scrolled back through his emails from the previous year and saw that the flyer matched the email—except his photo was now in black and white rather than colour. Although he reported it to Crime Stoppers immediately, Western Australian police visited his home last Sunday morning and placed him under caution while asking whether the claim had any truth.

“My partner answered the intercom. He said, ‘There are police here,’ and I said, ‘I’ll go downstairs and talk to them.’ First of all, they only told me their first names. They told me I was not in trouble, but they had to caution me,” he shared.

Since the flyer has been found in many people’s mailboxes, it wasn’t the first time Helleren had been asked the question. He worries he may have sounded rehearsed to the officers.

“I am rehearsed on that because I’ve had to explain it now to three or four different people,” he said.

“I haven’t been outside Australia since 2019, and if I could get a bus fare out of an LGBTQI+ organisation, I’d be really impressed—let alone a flight to Southeast Asia to do nefarious things.”

Helleren says the situation highlights how little police can do under current laws.

“If we had stronger anti-vilification laws dealing with not just religion, but race, ethnicity, gender, sexuality—that would make it easier,” he said. At the moment, the only action he could take is an expensive civil defamation case, but that would require knowing who is distributing the flyers.

OUTinPerth has seen five different versions of the flyers, each targeting a different person. We spoke to another victim earlier this year who found a flyer in his own letterbox.

The victim told us that while nobody who knew him would take the outlandish claims seriously, he was concerned about how people unfamiliar with him might react—and how the wider LGBTIQA+ communities are being perceived when people receive notices like these in their mail.

Gregory Helleren does not know any of the other men who have appeared in the flyers. As he is retiring later this year, he is not worried about his career prospects being damaged, but he does worry about the impact on others.

“I think if more people were aware of it—and aware that there are people in positions where they do have something to lose… They might be a gay dad, they could be a politician or a former politician who has a reputation they want to protect. Why were those five people chosen? I don’t know.”

Last year, at the beginning of PrideFEST, Helleren shared his experience of being the victim of a gay bashing in his youth. He recalled that when police were called to the incident, he ended up in a cell as well, after officers failed to recognise he was the victim.

“It’s frustrating that 40 years on—more than 40 years—those attitudes are still out there, after all that we’ve done to try to overcome that.”

“There are still a lot of people who have hate. I don’t understand it. I don’t hate them. I don’t hate the people who bashed me 40-odd years ago,” Helleren said.

Helleren thinks that police could be doing more to build trust within LGBTIQA+ communities, noting that many people have had negative experiences with police in the past.

A spokesperson for Western Australian Police urged anyone with information about the distribution of the flyers to come forward.

“WA Police appreciate community assistance in reporting any criminal activity, and information from the public is instrumental in identifying and disrupting criminal offences,” the spokesperson said.

“We urge members of the public who have evidence of crimes being committed to alert police. Anyone with any information relating to these flyers, or any criminal activity, is urged to provide the information to police on 131 444 or Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or online at www.crimestopperswa.com.au.”

Reports to Crime Stoppers can be anonymous.

Do you need some support?

If you are struggling with anxiety or depression, support and counselling are available from:

QLife: 1800 184 527 / qlife.org.au 
QLife are a counselling and referral service for LGBTQIA+ people.

DISCHARGED: info@discharged.asn.au / discharged.asn.au
Discharged is a trans-led support service with peer support groups for trans and gender diverse folks.

Lifeline: 13 11 14 / lifeline.org.au

Beyondblue: 1300 22 4636 / www.beyondblue.org.au