Albany man faces 40 child sexual abuse charges

An Albany man charged with 40 historic child sex abuse charges has made a brief appearance in court this morning.

The man, who cannot be named to protect the identity of the victim, was not required to plead to the charges when he appeared in Albany Magistrate’s Court.

The man faces 20 counts of knowingly sexually penetrating a child who was a lineal/de facto relative and 15 counts of indecently dealing with a child who is a lineal relative or de facto child.

He was also charged with one count each of persistent sexual conduct with a child under 16 years, procuring a child to engage in sexual behaviour who was a lineal relative and intent to procure a person under 16 years for sexual activity.

The court was told this morning the 54-year-old had begun getting legal advice from his solicitor and understood the charges but they were not read to him during his appearance.

Cold Case Serious Crime Squad detectives charged him following an extensive investigation into alleged child sexual abuse incidents.

The man’s bail was renewed until his next court appearance, which will be a committal mention on November 1.