Man accused of drugging, raping girls released on bail

A man accused of drugging and sexually assaulting three teenage girls during a party at a Toowong apartment has been granted bail.

A Brisbane man who was allegedly involved in drugging, raping and sexually assaulting three juvenile girls in December has been released on bail.

The 24-year-old is facing 14 charges related to the incident, including seven counts of rape, two counts of sexual assault and two counts of stupefying to commit an indictable offence.

During his bail application, Brisbane Magistrates Court heard four men picked up their alleged victims, aged 16 and 17, on the night of December 19, before hosting a party at an apartment building in Toowong.

The man’s defence lawyer Torik Dib said two of the three victims had “voluntarily” smoked cannabis, but the man was not with them at the time.

“At 3.15am the building manager comes and knocks on the apartment door and they leave. My client is not with the group of people,” he said.

“They go to the Coles petrol station and the victim makes a Snapchat in the car, with her friends all joking, and it’s believed she sends it to a couple of her associates,” he said.

He said later the group returned to the apartment and one of the victims felt sick and threw up in the bathroom, the other two fell asleep fully clothed on the bed, after a brief conversation, where the girls claimed they felt as though they had been drugged.

Crown Prosecutor Sarah Kingston said CCTV footage had shown one of the victims was too intoxicated to stand without assistance.

One of the victims had allegedly identified the man who faced court today as her attacker on the night of the offence.

Mr Dib said one victim had felt a man touching her breasts, lips and vagina when she was in the bed, but he stopped after she had asked him to.

“The victim later says that she believes this person wasn’t my client,” Mr Dib said.

Ms Kingston noted that the man had a criminal history, with most incidents having occurred in group settings.

Magistrate Rosemary Gilbert said while the alleged incident occurred in December, the man and his co accused were not arrested until April.

“The submissions that are made to me regarding your offending in a group setting is something I’d have considered, but overall in my view you have a right to bail,” she said.

“I consider that bail with conditions can meet any risk that you pose.”

The case has been adjourned until April 27.