Court hears ‘development’ in case of man, 28, charged with raping a child in Alice Springs
The ‘development’ comes as the charged man is in a ‘sensitive and delicate’ position, the court heard. Read the latest.
There has been a “development” in the case of a man charged with raping a child, an Alice Springs court has heard.
It was mentioned during the case of a 28-year-old man on Thursday, October 30, but scant detail was provided as Judge Anthony Hopkins closed the court to the public.
The man was charged with a litany of child abuse offences in May this year, and has spent the past six months on remand.
This masthead cannot name the charged man, as under NT law individuals charged with sexual crimes have a statutory suppression placed on their identification, unless they are committed to the Supreme Court.
The man has been charged with having sexual intercourse with a child aged under 10.
He has also been charged with two counts of gross indecency with a child under 14; three counts of producing child abuse material via a carriage service; one count of possessing or controlling child abuse material; one count of accessing child abuse material; and one count of transmitting child abuse material.
On October 30, the man’s lawyer Daniel Gorry said there had been a “development in terms of the charges in this matter”.
However, no further detail was provided in open court as Mr Gorry requested it be closed, which prosecutor Tania McKinney did not oppose.
Judge Hopkins asked Mr Gorry to outline the reasoning behind his request, with Mr Gorry stating the “development” relating to the charges and the “sensitive nature” of the charges as one.
Mr Gorry’s second reason for wanting to shut the court was his client’s “sensitive mental health”.
“(The man) was remanded initially in the Alice Springs Correctional Centre; for more than enough time he was held in a high risk setting,” Mr Gorry said.
“There are instances of self harm and threats to this person on both himself and others.”
Mr Gorry said his client was now behind bars in Darwin, where “he’s been essentially held in solitary confinement”.
“Suffice to say his mental health at the moment is in a very sensitive and delicate position,” Mr Gorry said.
The man was arrested in May in Alice Springs, after NT Police received a tip off about his alleged offending from the FBI.
A home in Alice Springs was searched, where “large quantities” of alleged child abuse material was seized, NT police said in a statement issued in May.
The man did not physcially appear in court on Thursday.
He was remanded in custody, with his matter returning to court January 22.
