Rapist dad sentenced to jail over violent attacks on ex-partner in Bundaberg

Bundaberg man who brutally raped his ex-partner twice in public while under a domestic violence order has been jailed, but could walk free within months.

The Saltwater Creek drain where the first rape took place — the woman was bleeding from her face when the offender forced himself on her.

A Bundaberg man who raped his ex-partner twice in public while subject to a domestic violence protection order could walk free from jail in less than four months.

The 21-year-old, who can’t be named for legal reasons, appeared in Bundaberg District Court on Thursday, July 31 where he pleaded guilty to one count of assault occasioning bodily harm and two counts of rape.

The court heard the offending took place on June 9, 2023, while he was subject to a protection order prohibiting him from contacting the complainant — the mother of his child — or attending her residence.
The order had been in place since January 18, 2023.

The pair had been staying together in the lead-up to the attack.
On June 5, the offender’s former partner travelled to Bargara with him and his new partner.
After the new partner left, the two returned to Bundaberg and stayed at a friend’s house.
On June 9, the man became angry when the woman refused to have sex with him.
He punched her in the jaw and the left eye, causing her to cry and bleed.

The 21-year-old appeared in Bundaberg District Court this week, where he was sentenced over a brutal series of domestic violence offences. Picture: istock

The court heard he told her to ‘shut the f*ck up,’ and then punched her left eye, causing her to bleed immediately.
“You then said to the complainant, ‘Now look what you’ve caused’,” Judge Nathan Jarro said.

He then handed her a shirt to stem the bleeding before the pair walked to the Saltwater Creek drain.
There, he demanded sex again.
When she refused, he pulled off her pants, grabbed her by the throat, pushed her against a fence and raped her from behind.

“You palmed her in the back of her head as she repeatedly said ‘no’,” the court heard.
That offending lasted for about five minutes.

The pair continued walking and reached a park near the Melbourne Hotel, where he again demanded sex.
After repeated refusals, the complainant eventually gave in. He raped her a second time.

The woman was examined the next day and was found to have bruising to her neck, left eye, jaw, and arm.
Photographs and a victim impact statement were tendered, though not revealed to the court.

The offender has spent more than two years in custody awaiting sentencing for the violent assaults and rapes.

The court heard the man denied the offending in a police interview following the attacks.
He had a criminal history of domestic violence dating back to when he was 17.
He had previously assaulted the same victim, breached multiple protection orders, and failed to comply with probation.

The crown prosecutor said the offending demonstrated “entrenched domestic violence attitudes”.
“They are about control and they are about entitlement,” he said.

“Under no circumstances … should any woman be subjected to the hands of violence by any man,” Judge Jarro said.

“You need to think about the consequences if your daughter is placed in the situation that her mother was faced with.”

Judge Jarro convicted the man and sentenced him to seven-and-a-half years’ imprisonment for the two rapes, with a concurrent 12-month sentence for the assault.
He had spent 779 days in pre sentence custody, which was considered time served.
His parole eligibility is December 13, 2025.