Peter and Sudarat Baker plead not guilty to sexual assault of young girl

A married couple accused of raping a young girl in the Hunter will go to trial next year to defend the charges, after the pair pleaded not guilty in Newcastle District Court.

Newcastle District Court where the couple pleaded not guilty. Supplied Amy Ziniak

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A husband and wife, who allegedly pinned down and raped a young child left in their care by trusting friends, have pleaded not guilty to seven combined charges of sexual assault.

Peter David Baker, 60, and his wife Sudarat Baker, 36, were extradited from Queensland over the alleged historical sexual abuse of a young girl in the Hunter.

A court heard the child, who was aged between nine and ten at the time, had been left in the Bakers’ care after they had enjoyed dinner with the victims family, before she was allegedly forced to strip and was held down while Mr Baker raped her in the couple’s caravan.

Peter Baker, pictured with a woman (not involved in proceedings) has been charged with sexual assault, along with his wife Sudarat Baker. Supplied.

The alleged offences are said to have taken place between November 2014 and January 2016.

Police allege the married couple then flew to Thailand to “avoid detection” in late 2017.

The mother of the young girl said they had become friends with the young couple because they were going through similar IVF issues.

She said they had helped them to try and conceive, and put them onto a doctor in Sydney, entrusting them to babysit while she received treatment for breast cancer.

The couple now currently have a young child of their own.

Mr Baker is charged with three counts of having sexual intercourse with a person under 10 in company and one count of sexual intercourse with a person between 10 and 14.

Ms Baker - a Thai national - is facing three charges of sexual intercourse with a person under 10 in company.

Recently in Newcastle District Court the pair pleaded not guilty to all charges and a trial date has been set for April next year, expected to run from five to seven days.

Peter Baker (pictured) and his wife Sudarat will go to trial in April next year. Supplied.

The married couple were arrested at their North Lakes home in Queensland on October 2 and extradited back to NSW to face the charges.

They were initially refused bail in the Local Court after they were deemed a flight risk, with the prosecution saying they would flee the jurisdiction.

But the following month, they made a bail application to Sydney’s Supreme Court, where Justice Richard Cavanaugh rejected a proposition that Mr Baker tried to deceive police in an email in August 2019 telling an officer it had always been the family’s goal to “settle in Thailand”.

They were granted strict condition bail and must remain living in the Hunter, with a curfew imposed.