Gold Coast lifesaver, 22, charged with rape of woman, 21, at surf club

A young Gold Coast lifesaver has asked a court for permission to resume contact with the alleged victim’s brother.

A young Gold Coast lifesaver charged with raping a woman at a local surf club has asked a court to let him resume contact with the victim’s brother so they can attend a wedding together, court documents reveal.

The competitive lifesaver, 22, a member of a prominent Queensland lifesaving family, faced Southport Magistrates Court on Wednesday charged with raping the 21-year-old at a Gold Coast surf club on September 13 last year.

He and the surf club can’t be identified for legal reasons.

Swapping his clubbie kit for a shirt and tie, the man was accompanied to court by his father and lawyer.

The man’s bail conditions stipulate he have no contact with 14 prosecution witnesses, including the alleged victim and her brother.

The Gold Coast lifesaver charged with rape (right) is accompanied by his father (centre) and lawyer outside court. Picture: Greg Stolz

But defence lawyer, Peter Boyce, asked the magistrate to remove the no-contact conditions relating to four of the witnesses, including the brother and his girlfriend.

A bail variation application tendered to the court by Mr Boyce said the four - two men and two women - were all close friends of the accused.

Mr Boyce said the alleged victim’s brother and his girlfriend were ‘personal friends of our client’ and had been invited to an upcoming wedding.

“This had been planned long before our client was arrested and both persons are very close friends of our client,” he wrote.

Police prosecutor Jim Pedlow opposed the bail variation, saying the four were prosecution witnesses.

The magistrate adjourned the bail variation application until the lifesaver’s next court date on March 30.

He and his lawyer did not comment outside court.

The matter comes as Surf Life Saving Queensland launched a review of culture and behaviour in the movement after a string of unrelated alleged scandals.

They include the allegations of a sex tape involving a 15-year-old and illegal footage taken inside a surf club locker room.

In a statement, SLSQ said it was conducting ‘a formal review of its policies and procedures relating to activities undertaken within clubs’.

“The review will play an important role in identifying any opportunities to improve safety,” a spokeswoman said.

“Safety is a core value of Surf Life Saving Queensland and we are committed to keeping both beachgoers and our members safe.”