Man charged with raping 90-year-old woman after allegedly breaking into NSW nursing home
A 34-year-old man has been charged over what police allege was the “horrendous” rape of a 90-year-old woman in a New South Wales aged-care facility.
The elderly woman was treated for serious injuries in hospital after the alleged attack on the Central Coast that police say left the victim traumatised.
Police allege the man broke into the aged-care home at Bateau Bay about 12.40am last Wednesday before attacking the woman.
The 34-year-old man was arrested at a home in Caves Beach, near Lake Macquarie, on Monday evening and later charged with a string of offences including aggravated sexual assault.
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The man had run out the back door of the property and jumped a fence before he was caught, police alleged on Tuesday. He was taken to hospital to treat minor injuries to his arm.
He was subsequently refused bail to appear at Belmont local court on Tuesday.
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Sex crimes squad commander Jayne Doherty said it was “horrendous that someone, any person in the safety of their home would be attacked like this, but to [allegedly] attack a very defenceless old lady is beyond belief”.
Doherty said the alleged assault appeared to have been an opportunistic attack.
“So far we haven’t been able to find any connection between this male, the aged-care facility and the woman prior to the ... offence,” she told reporters.
The woman was very traumatised and being looked after by family and medical staff as she recovered from severe wounds to her arms, the detective superintendent said.
“As you can understand, being elderly, her skin has torn significantly where pressure was applied,” she said.
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Before the 34-year-old was arrested, detectives raided an address in The Entrance on Friday night.
During the search, police allege they located electronics, sim cards and clothing relevant to their investigation. The items were seized to undergo forensic examination.
The 34-year-old was charged with aggravated break and enter, inflicting actual bodily harm with intent to have sexual intercourse, aggravated sexual assault (break and enter) and aggravated sexual assault (inflict actual bodily harm on victim).
Extra security had been hired at the nursing home to ensure residents felt safe, police said, but they had no ongoing safety concerns.
Information and support for anyone affected by rape or sexual abuse issues is available from the following organisations. In Australia, support is available at 1800Respect (1800 737 732). In the UK, Rape Crisis offers support on 0808 500 2222. In the US, Rainn offers support on 800-656-4673. Other international helplines can be found at ibiblio.org/rcip/internl.html