August 31, 2026 — 5:00amThe news that two groups of private school boys had been charged over separate alleged incidents of gang rape was distressing, but not surprising, for Tegan Wagner.In 2002, the then-14-year-old survived a horrific gang rape in Sydney’s inner west. Four brothers and a friend were convicted of committing a series of brutal attacks against young women across a six-month period, filming the assaults at times at knifepoint.Gang rape survivor Tegan Wagner said men need to do more to change attitudes of entitlement.KATE GERAGHTYIn the 24 years since, Wagner believes that while support for survivors coming forward has improved, the underlying culture that emboldens young men to commit such atrocities has not.“They feed off each other’s group mentality,” she said. “They reinforce their own opinions and create their own echo chamber, deciding that their thoughts and opinions on women must be [true].”Since the crime of aggravated sexual assault in company was introduced in 2001 – carrying a maximum penalty of life imprisonment – there have been 328 charges which have been finalised through the courts, 124 of which resulted in convictions. Of the 328 charges, one-quarter involved defendants under the age of 18, according to the NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research. These figures do not include the charges arising from the three incidents listed above, which have not been finalised in court.Lawyer and gang rape survivor Karen Iles said group sexual violence is a specific kind of horror. “It is like a pack of wild dogs descending on a piece of prey,” she said.“Gang rape isn’t about consent. In a way, it’s not even about the victim. These boys and men [convicted of gang rape] know what they are doing is wrong – that’s the point. To display to one another that they can,” she said.Surviving such an attack, she said, was a “miracle”.‘Gang rape isn’t about consent. In a way, it’s not even about the victim. These boys and men [convicted of gang rape] know what they are doing is wrong – that’s the point. To display to one another that they can.’Lawyer and gang rape survivor Karen IlesPorn, empathy and violenceThe idea that boys barely into their teenage years could commit such violence has shocked parents and the public. The Scots College students who attended court this week are still boys, their parents towering over them. The victim was just as young.Early adolescence is a high-risk period for distorted views on intimacy, clinical and forensic psychologist Dr Katie Seidler said, with boys not understanding sex needs to be coupled with intimacy.“Empathy doesn’t align with sex naturally at that developmental stage,” she said. “[Group attacks] boil down to peer recognition and peer acceptance.”When confronted with a primary instigator, others follow along, eager to have their performance of masculinity witnessed and validated by their peer group.This immaturity, lack of understanding of healthy intimacy, coupled with the fact they were listening to their friends about what sex is, meant many had a perception that was “completely distorted”.Seidler said early exposure to violent or degrading pornography further distorted reality. Children are now first exposed to porn before they turn 14 on average, a 2020 Our Watch study found, with nearly 80 per cent agreeing that porn impacted how women are viewed in real life. An Australian Institute of Criminology study linked frequent consumption of violent pornography to an increased probability of committing sexual violence.On Thursday, police launched an investigation into the death of a 16-year-old girl on Sydney’s northern beaches after a suspected choking act during sex. A 2024 University of Melbourne and University of Queensland study found about 50 per cent of young people had engaged in choking or strangulation during sex.Social Services Minister Tanya Plibersek on Sunday said the government would consider a ban on porn which depicts choking or strangulation, in line with laws introduced in Britain last year, alongside additional reforms to limit young people’s exposure the violent and mysognisitic content online.“It is pervasive and widespread and deadly, and it’s being spread to our young people and normalised,” she said on ABC’s Insiders.Queensland University of Technology sociology professor Michael Flood said in some hypermasculine subcultures, such as military colleges and sporting groups, male bonding was prioritised above empathy for women.“Some boys and men grow up learning that codes of loyalty to other men and bonding with other men is primary … They learn to privilege platonic relations with their male peers over their connections to women.”In these groups, men who already harbour those disrespectful beliefs will recognise coercive or sleazy behaviour as a way to gain status among their peers, as well as engage in ritualised nudity, spanking or bastardisation. While homoerotic from the outside, Flood said they were driven by bonding rather than sexual desire.The ‘bro code’ and institutional cultureSporting groups have long been accused of harbouring a culture that pushes the bro code and treats women as commodities.This month, Sydney Swans players have been accused of sexually assaulting a woman during a night of partying at a Melbourne hotel. During later Mad Monday celebrations, Richmond Tigers players were videoed appearing to reenact and mock the alleged sexual assault, striking one another with belts, and exposing their genitals. The club denied they were referencing the alleged Swans assault.The five Sydney Swans players stood down over the alleged sexual assault investigation.9NewsWagner said that after her attackers were charged, boys from a partner private school would harass her on her daily commute with sexualised abuse. “They were the ones calling me out in public and making my trip to and from school horrendous,” she says. “It was that group pack mentality. Private schools and sporting groups have a real issue with this.”Sydney University media professor Catharine Lumby advised the NRL on gender for 15 years following 2004 allegations of gang rape perpetrated by the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs. That allegation did not lead to police charges. A second rugby league gang rape allegation from that same year was the subject of an inquiry after a senior police officer accepted football tickets from a player linked to the investigation.Lumby said high-performing team environments can create a dangerous reward system.“It is young men demonstrating their sexual powers to each other, and women become a kind of bonding currency,” she said. The extreme discipline coupled with a desire to let off steam, traditionally involved alcohol, women and drugs as a reward system.“There are often men who are very uncomfortable with this sort of behaviour, but find it hard to intervene because they’re breaking the kind of bro code of silence,” she said. “It’s difficult for junior players to stand up to [star players].”Key to tackling this was good education, in which players acted out real-world scenarios to understand what “ethical by-standing” is and comprehend the consequences of a good night gone bad. Lumby said these education campaigns needed to be implemented widely.“There is a duty of care [to the players], and to the women they’re going to come in contact with,” she said.Addressing the manosphereProblematic behaviour among role models, such as elite athletes, coupled with the rise of misogynistic “man-fluencers” is a huge concern for educators and parents.CEO of youth education organisation The Man Cave, Ben Vasiliou, said messages from the manosphere included ideas that being a man meant being “tough”, aggressive and dominating, while women wanted to be dominated, belonged in the home, and should provide sex on demand.“The influences that are penetrating boys’ minds and worlds, coming through their digital devices, are a big concern,” he said.For boys’ undeveloped brains, these simple messages provided “clear and concise” clarity on what it meant to be a man. “When entitlement and power and control show up, that’s where we lose empathy, and we dehumanise people, and that’s where you get sexual assaults,” he said.Plenty of young boys called out poor behaviour, with course facilitators reporting fury and frustration from students around the recent alleged incidents.“Boys are actually explicitly publicly stating that this is not on, this is disgusting. They don’t want to see this happening. They’re embarrassed,” Vasiliou said. Some have taken their outrage out on the alleged Scots College perpetrators, with threats levelled and a home egged.Vasiliou said the recent AFL-alleged incidents were frustrating because they showed boys what was acceptable behaviour, but added the swift condemnation and player suspension sent an important message.A predictable cycleReflecting on the month of horror allegations, Wagner pointed to what she said was a predictable publicity cycle of organisations distancing themselves from the allegations and doing damage control with inevitable public discourse blaming the alleged victims.“Before you know it, the incident is completely forgotten about. Another incident happens a few years later, and we start the same cycle again. It’s always the same thing,” she said.Tegan Wagner, pictured in 2006, during the trial of her gang rapists. She chose to reveal her identity, while the court suppressed the identity of the perpetrators. Kate GeraghtyWagner and Karen Iles are advocating for victims to be given their own lawyers to assist during the legal process alongside the public prosecutor, to ensure their rights are respected and their wishes heard.Wagner placed the responsibility of addressing the problematic culture which brutalised women back on men.“It’s up to the men now. They need to fix this,” she said.Support is available from the National Sexual Assault, Domestic Family Violence Counselling Service at 1800RESPECT (1800 737 732) or the Men’s Referral Service on 1300 766 491.Amber Schultz is a crime and justice reporter with The Sydney Morning Herald.Connect via X or email.From our partners