Lawyers for a high-profile man accused of rape are seeking access to information from his alleged victim’s phone, as well as the results of a forensic medical officer’s report.
The man, who is charged with two counts of raping a young woman in Toowoomba in October 2021, cannot be named under Queensland law.
He has been on bail since the matter was first mentioned in court in January and has been represented by his lawyer, Rowan King, who on Wednesday morning appeared by phone before the Toowoomba magistrates court for a committal hearing.
Crown prosecutor Sally Dreghorn sought a six-week adjournment of proceedings as her team worked to meet a disclosure request by the defence.
That consisted of a forensic medical officer’s report conducted after the alleged sexual assault.
It also included data obtained from the woman’s phone by police using the Israeli company Cellebrite.
The case was adjourned until 28 June at which point Dreghorn said prosecutors would either be in a position to meet the disclosure requests or advise the court when that next step “might be due”.
King was again granted leave to represent the defendant by phone at the next hearing unless “anything substantive” arises.
Under current laws, a person accused in Queensland of serious sexual offences must be committed to stand trial before they can be named publicly. The state is one of the last jurisdictions to retain this law, which the attorney general, Shannon Fentiman, has flagged will be changed this year.
A joint bid by a conglomeration of media companies which sought leave to name the accused man was rejected by the court in February as premature.
