A South Coast man faces up to 20 years in prison after being found guilty of raping his ex-girlfriend’s teenage daughter in 2016, returning hours after the assault to eat dinner at the home.
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The man, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was found guilty of aggravated sexual assault of a victim under the age of 16 in Bega District Court on Friday, November 16.
NSW District Court Judge Andrew Colefax revoked the man’s bail and adjourned the matter for sentencing at Parramatta District Court on February 8 next year.
The man, aged in his 30s, had pleaded not guilty after he was arrested by the NSW Police Far South Coast Child Abuse Squad in September last year, following an investigation by the unit.
He had been on bail since October 2017.
The offence occurred between September 30 and December 1, 2016, in the months after the unemployed man’s relationship with his victim’s mother had ended.
The jury found the man had dragged his victim, still dressed in her pyjamas, through a hallway to her bedroom and assaulted her.
The Crown prosecution had alleged the man broke into the front yard of the three-bedroom brick house, the victim’s dog alerting her to his presence while her mother was out, and that he smiled during the assault.
An earlier jury had been tossed out on November 6 by Judge Colefax, following what Crown prosecutors said was an ”egregious breach” by the man’s barrister during his opening statement to the jury.
His barrister told the jury his client was “falsely accused with an outrageous offence”, and that the Crown case consisted of “thin fabric on a thin frame”.
“Thank God you’re here. I represent the poor unfortunate man in the dock,” he told the jury.
Counsel for the accused can open, but it should only be to indicate the issues in contention and not be a wide ranging discussion of the law.
Aggravated sexual assault carries a maximum of 20 years in prison in NSW.