Update: Grafton horse trainer Dwayne Donald Schmidt accused of teen rape in 1990s

In a situation deemed unusual by a magistrate, a high-profile horse trainer accused of raping a teen girl has instructed his lawyer to not continue his bail and voluntarily entered himself into custody.

Port Macquarie Courthouse. Picture: Janine Watson.

In a situation deemed unusual by a magistrate, a high-profile horse trainer accused of raping a teen girl has instructed his lawyer to not continue his bail and voluntarily entered himself into custody.

After some hesitation, and Magistrate Georgina Darcy taking a brief moment to consult legal documents, she formally revoked Dwayne Donald Schmidt’s bail and instructed corrections officers to take him into custody on Thursday in Port Macquarie Local Court.

Schmidt, 56, an ex-jockey, is yet to enter pleas to charges of sexual intercourse with a person 10 or over and under 16 years, as well as sexual intercourse with person 14 or over and under 16 years.

He is due to appear in a hearing committal for sentencing on July 24.

In January last year, Mid-North Coast Police District detectives launched an investigation after reports were made of two alleged sexual assaults against the same teen girl in 1994 and 1996 at Port Macquarie.

Grafton trainer Dwayne Schmidt.

According to court documents the alleged rapes took place in the Port Macquarie area when the alleged victim was 13 and again when she was 15.

Schmidt was arrested by police at a Grafton address about 7am on Tuesday, November 12, last year.

Schmidt was taken to Grafton Police Station and charged.

He had been granted bail and was reporting to Grafton police station three times a week before entering custody.

Schmidt has been further charged with sexually touching a person without consent between January 1 and June 30, 2024 at Glenugie.

According to court documents, this is not the same alleged victim in relation to the rape charges.

Schmidt was stripped of his training licence in late last year when the charges came to light.

At the time a Racing NSW spokesperson said Schmidt would need to move about 35 horses from his “sizeable stable” in Grafton.

Schmidt was a jockey before he became a successful trainer. He rode his first winner at Royal Randwick in 1984 and won his last race at Taree in 1995.

Schmidt told the John Tapp Racing podcast in 2022 that he quit riding when his health was suddenly threatened by wasting and the use of diuretics.

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