Albany man bailed after allegedly sexually assaulting woman during break-in

An Albany man facing serious sexual assault charges has been granted bail. Ricky Oliver Williams, 45, allegedly broke into a woman’s home last Wednesday and sexually assaulted her while he held his hand on her neck before allegedly threatening her with a knife as she repeatedly screamed for help. Mr Williams appeared in Albany Magistrate’s Court while in police custody on Thursday on four charges relating to the alleged incident. He was charged with aggravated home burglary, impeding another person’s normal breathing or blood circulation by applying pressure to their neck, aggravated indecent assault and aggravated sexual penetration without consent. Police prosecutor Sgt Mike Russell alleged the woman was at home alone at 3.30am when Mr Williams entered her home “without consent” through the rear sliding door. The alleged victim repeatedly told him to “go away” and leave her alone, to which he is alleged to have responded: “I’m having you tonight”. Sgt Russell said Mr Williams then pushed the woman onto a couch and “impeded her breathing” by continually applying pressure to her throat. He is alleged to have sexually assaulted the woman in a “rough and violent manner” as he continued to hold a hand to her neck. The woman screamed for help, allegedly causing Mr Williams to shout at her that he had a knife and would stab her. Sgt Russell said the woman then “screamed as loud as she could” and Mr Williams got off her and left through the sliding door. As he left, the woman allegedly saw the handle of a knife protruding from the waistband of his pants. The woman got up and locked the door and then called triple zero. She received visible bruising on her neck and throat. Sgt Russell said he opposed granting Mr Williams bail as he had six previous convictions of breaching bail, which he said indicated the man may not comply with orders the court may impose on him. Mr Williams’ defence lawyer said the allegations were “serious” and Mr Williams had indicated he would enter a plea of not guilty. Magistrate Erin O’Donnell said Mr Williams had some “extremely serious” matters on his criminal record and had previously been imprisoned. She said she was persuaded by a “very small margin” to grant him bail, under a series of conditions. Mr Williams is due to reappear in court on January 19.