Iranian refugee Kaz Shwan bailed on aggravated rape charge

Police allege commercial painter Kaz Shwan raped an 18-year-old woman after meeting her at a popular Sydney nightclub.

Iranian refugee Kaz Shwan has been granted strict conditional bail by the NSW Supreme Court on a charge of aggravated sexual assault. Picture: Facebook

A teenager allegedly forcefully raped by an Iranian refugee twice her age was left with visible bruises to multiple parts of her body, a court has heard.

Police allege commercial painter Kaz Shwan, 36, met the 18-year-old woman through a mutual acquaintance while out celebrating a friend’s birthday party at Sydney’s Wave Nightclub in Haymarket on the evening of August 3 this year.

According to documents tendered to the NSW Supreme Court, police will allege Shwan cozied up to the teen throughout the night and plied her with alcohol to the point where a friend noticed she was “struggling on her feet”.

When the woman decided to leave in an Uber, Shwan allegedly demanded to know her address.

She told police she eventually relented and gave it to him.

Shwan spent more than a month behind bars on remand before being bailed from custody last month.

It is alleged Shwan turned up at the woman’s unit 15 minutes after she got home and asked to be let in.

Once inside, he allegedly tried to convince her to go to another party with him but she declined.

According to police, the pair ended up in the bedroom, where Shwan allegedly pushed her onto the bed and moved on top of her, allegedly ignoring her as she called out for him to stop.

The court heard Shwan allegedly grabbed the girl around the neck and squeezed, making it hard for her to breathe.

Police allege he then raped her over the course of about two hours, at various times allegedly hitting her around the head and body and telling her to hit him back.

The teen claimed she repeatedly asked Shwan to stop but he allegedly refused, at one stage telling her “stop crying, stop shaking” and at another time ordering her to perform fellatio on him.

The court heard Shwan eventually left the apartment about 8.30am.

The teen reported the alleged rape to a friend later that day then her mother the following afternoon.

A report was made to Chatswood Police Station where investigating police took photos of a series of injuries on the teen’s body including bruising to her arms, neck, lips and knees.

Detectives arrested Shwan about a week later and charged him with one count of aggravated sexual intercourse without consent.

The 36-year-old must abide by strict conditional bail which includes daily reporting and house arrest.

He was remanded in custody at the time and spent a month behind bars before being granted strict conditional bail in the NSW Supreme Court last month.

Shwan’s barrister, Peter Kondich, said his client intended to fight the allegations at trial and suggested a series of text messages sent between Shwan and the teen after the alleged assault may cast doubt over the woman’s claim she had been raped that night.

He proposed a set of stringent bail conditions for his client, including daily reporting to police, house arrest and a prohibition on social media.

Justice Hament Dhanji noted the case against Shwan appeared “reasonably strong” and the facts as alleged constituted “a very serious example of a serious charge”.

But he rejected prosecution claims Shwan was a flight risk, saying his status as a refugee in Australia meant he risked being returned to his native Iran to face persecution if he left the country.

Justice Dhanji agreed to grant bail, noting Shwan suffered from seizures which were difficult to treat in custody. He found the strict conditions would reduce the risk of Shwan fleeing the country, interfering with witnesses or endangering the safety of the community.

The case will return to court next month.

Originally published as Iranian refugee Kaz Shwan bailed on aggravated rape charge