Registered sex offender Warren “Wazza” Wright arrested near Warrnambool during charity walk

A registered sex offender who had been walking across the state to raise money for mental health has been arrested, with locals relieved his journey has been cut short.

Former charity fundraiser Warren Wright was placed on the sex offenders registry for eight years in tandem with an 18-month community corrections order.

A registered sex offender who had been walking across the state to raise money for mental health has been hit with fresh charges in court.

Warren “Wazza” Wright, 49, was arrested near Warrnambool on Monday during his charity walk across the state, aiming to raise money and awareness for mental health.

He used a public Facebook page to ask for accommodation to stay in during his trip.

Two charities previously cut ties with the former Mildura local after he was convicted of sexually assaulting a 16-year-old girl in a caravan park.

He was placed on the sex offenders register for eight years and was on Monday charged with four counts of failing to comply with his reporting obligations as a registered sex offender.

The Warrnambool Standard has reported that Wright fronted the Warrnambool Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday, where he made no application for bail.

He was remanded in custody until June 26 when he is due to face the court for a further mention.

Willaura’s Wendy Seggie, who let Wright sleep on her couch for two nights from June 5 without knowing he was a sex offender, said Tuesday’s charges were an “amazing result” for the local communities.

“They will be over the moon that justice has been served for now,” she said.

“The relief of being free again and not having the feeling of having to hide inside constantly is great for now – it’s not over – but knowing justice is being served is all we could ask for.”

Warren Wright in his R U OK? charity shirt.

Concerns were growing within regional Victorian towns as the man, whose history is unknown to many, continued his journey across the southwest of the state.

The two charities he previously claimed to be affiliated with – R U OK? and Beyond Blue – confirmed last week Wright was not connected to them, raising questions within local groups of his validity.

On June 5, Ms Seggie offered her couch for Wright to stay on for two nights, not knowing the “horrific” crime he committed three years earlier.

Her six-year-old granddaughter and two daughters, aged 19 and 20, were living at the home while Wright stayed on the couch.

“I offered for him to stay at my bookshop in Willaura but then thought there was no heating, so we offered him to stay in the lounge,” she told the Herald Sun.

“When he left there was something still bothering me about him and that’s when I found the post (online) about what he had done in Mildura.

“I feel sick and so violated that a person on the sex offenders register can just go and stay wherever they like and not have to inform people of their history.”

Ms Seggie said she’s struggling to live with the fact she let the man into her home with open arms.

“I have to live with this everyday knowing I put my family at risk of harm,” she added.

“I’m afraid to go outside in the evenings by myself because I’m afraid he will come back.

“I constantly feel sick knowing I had him in my home … it’s absolutely horrifying.”

Wright had allegedly been seen loitering around the Hamilton area over the past week, with multiple community members taking to social media to record and track his movements.

He was seen, and subsequently removed from, the front gate of Monivae College on Thursday and later from a Hamilton skate park early on Friday.

Ballarat woman Paula Platek said she was concerned for her community’s safety.

“Absolutely people should not let him stay with them,” she said.

“He was asking multiple people, and those people probably have no idea what he’s done.

“This man sexually assaulted a young girl. It’s terrifying.”