Brisbane man charged over rapes on young men in Fortitude Valley nightclub precinct

A MAN arrested for raping young, drunk men in Brisbane’s nightclub precinct could be linked to a string of other sexual assaults, Queensland police have said.

The Brunswick Street Mall just after the 3am lockout went into force across Fortitude Valley and CBD.

QUEENSLAND police have charged a man with the rapes of two young, drunk men in Brisbane’s nightclub precinct, and are investigating if he could be linked to a string of similar sexual assaults over the past decade.

A 48-year-old man will appear in court on Wednesday morning charged with the rapes, which occurred nearly a decade apart but were almost identical.

In both cases, the victims, both 22, had been on their way home in the early hours of the morning, when a man in a car pulled over and offered them a lift home.

In both incidents, the victim was then driven to a nearby street, where the man locked the doors and raped him.

In a statement released on Wednesday, police said the charges came after a investigations into a number of similar incidents.

In the latest incident, the 22-year-old victim was walking home about 4am on July 4 in the inner Brisbane entertainment precinct of Fortitude Valley when he was approached.

After the man drove him to a nearby street where he sexually assaulted him, the man managed to escape the vehicle and flee to a nearby service station to seek help.

It came nearly a decade after another 22-year-old was waiting for a bus in the same area, on May 17, 2007.

After accepting a lift offered by the man, he was driven to a car park, where he was assaulted.

The investigation remains ongoing, with police saying they are investigating several other similar incidents in the area in the past decade.

A 48-year-old man from Brisbane’s south side has been charged with rape and sexual assault.

He has been remanded in custody to appear in Brisbane Magistrates Court on Wednesday morning.

Anyone who has been the victim of a similar assault has been urged to report it to police.