Scott Zirus: WA paedophile jailed for 40 years in Texas planning a fresh appeal in a matter of months

A WA man jailed for 40 years in Texas for sexually abusing children at a US summer camp is planning a fresh appeal in a matter of months. Scott Zirus, who is originally from Pinjarra, was jailed in the US in 2010 after accepting a plea deal over allegations that he assaulted three boys while working at the camp in Texas as part of an international exchange program. He has to serve at least 20 years before he is eligible for parole. Zirus, who is now aged 40, recently wrote a letter to The West Australian in which he claimed he was innocent of his crimes and that he soon planned to lodge a new appeal in an attempt to get out of prison. “I believe my innocence campaign is newsworthy, especially in light of the fact I will be filing a legal innocence appeal in early 2025,” he wrote in his letter. “I feel confident I will prove my innocence.” Zirus’ latest letter — dated August 16, 2024 — is one of several the convicted child abuser has written from jail to the media over the years. After his arrest in the US, Zirus wrote a letter to The West claiming he was lied to by US authorities. “This country is corrupt,” he wrote in his 2010 letter. “The investigator on my case lied to me … he made me sign a statement that he wrote and that I didn’t agree with by telling me that if I didn’t I would be getting the max sentence under the law. I felt forced into signing it.” In 2018, Zirus sent another letter to The West in which he said he was pushing for the Australian Attorney-General’s Department to approve an international prisoner transfer request so he could serve his prison time in Australia. It is understood Zirus subsequently withdrew the request. After his US charges were laid, the WA Police Child Abuse Squad investigated Zirus because of the fact he had previously owned a camping enterprise in WA called Grassroots Ventures. The investigation ultimately led WA Police to issue an arrest warrant for Zirus over eight counts of indecently dealing with a child under 13 years, procuring and inciting a child to do an indecent act and the indecent recording of a child. In a statement sent to The West on Friday, a spokesperson for the Federal Attorney-General’s Department said it could not comment whether or not Zirus would soon be transferred to Australia. “As a matter of longstanding practice, for privacy reasons the Australian Government does not disclose whether it has received or is considering an application for transfer to or from Australia under the ITP Scheme, or the outcome of any such application,” they said. Zirus’ sister Christie Herwig told The West that her brother had recently been shifted to a higher security section of the Texas prison where he was being held. “The Texas prison system is harsh and any attempts by him to gather support have been met by punishment within the system,” she said. “He was recently moved to a higher security section of the prison after he released a podcast in an attempt to seek help. “This type of discipline is highly unusual and usually reserved for prisoners who have been violent or found guilty of drug trafficking.”