A man will appear in court today charged by Robbery and Serious Crime Squad detectives for his alleged role in the kidnapping and sexual assault of a woman this year.
About 6.45pm on Saturday 20 April 2024, officers attached to Ryde Police Area Command were called to Epping following reports a woman had been kidnapped.
Police arrived and were told a woman had allegedly been forced into a Toyota Camry by a group of unknown men, before the vehicle left the scene.
Officers established a crime scene and detectives attached to State Crime Command's Robbery & Serious Crime Squad established Strike Force Held to investigate the incident.
About 1pm Sunday 21 April 2024, detectives located the 36-year-old woman at a different address in Sydney's west, where she told police she had been allegedly drugged and sexually assaulted.
Strike force detectives immediately took the woman to hospital for treatment.
Following inquiries, last month, detectives charged a 29-year-old man after he was extradited from Victoria. He remains before the court.
Following further investigations, strike force detectives arrested a 37-year-old man at a correctional facility in Silverwater yesterday (Monday 15 June 2024).
The man was charged with take/detain in company with intent to ransom occasion aggravated bodily harm, assault person intend criminal activity of criminal group, aggravated sexual assault in company and deprive liberty, use intoxicating substance to commit indictable offence, intentionally record intimate image without consent and threaten to distribute intimate image without consent.
He was refused bail to appear before Parramatta Local Court today (Tuesday 16 July 2024).
Investigations under Strike Force Held continue.
Anyone with information that may assist investigators is urged to contact Crime Stoppers: 1800 333 000 or https://nsw.crimestoppers.com.au. Information is treated in strict confidence. The public is reminded not to report information via NSW Police social media pages.
