Feb 19, 2020

Blind Aged Care Resident Allegedly Raped By Staff Member

An article in the Townsville Bulletin is reporting that a blind and partially deaf woman was allegedly raped by a 21-year-old employee in an aged care facility in Townsville.

The alleged victim also claims to have endured sexual abuse ever since arriving at the facility.

It has been reported that the alleged attacker was a night shift aged care worker who was one of three employees that were working at the time of the incident which occurred on November 29, 2018.

The accused is believed to have entered the victim’s locked room using a key while acting as though he had intentions of changing the victim’s continence pads before raping the woman as she begged her attacker to stop.

The victim who is partially deaf, blind and bedridden was unable to physically identify her attacker, but police will allege that the DNA evidence taken from sperm that was found on the woman matched the 21-year-old aged care employee.

The Townsville Bulletin is also reporting that detectives seized the victim’s bedding and interviewed her before completing a rape kit and interviewing the two other staff members that were working at the time.

The man who can not be named for legal reasons was arrested two weeks after the alleged incident and is currently behind bars awaiting trial.

It is believed that the man had no prior criminal history and his defense lawyers claimed that there was a third contributor to the DNA that investigators found on the victim – in a failed attempt to secure bail for their client.

Police flagged their concerns about the attacker in court documents, sharing their concerns about how the 21-year-old used his position of trust to “commit a heinous sexual act against a significantly older disabled person in an aged care facility.”

The alleged rape is said to have taken place at an aged care facility that is currently run by a nationwide not-for-profit organisation, who has not yet publicly commented about the incident.

 

Photo courtesy of iStock- credit: Zefereli

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

Have New Aged Care Standards Influenced The Way That Residents & Families Treat Staff?

There is a very fine line between turning the other cheek and having people walk all over you, and nobody understands this better than those who work in aged care.  We as a society expect aged care staff to treat older people with dignity and respect, but some of the emotional and cognitive impairments that... Read More

How to deal with workplace bullying in aged care

Why do toxic cultures arise in aged care so regularly, what aged care workers can do if they find themselves in an unsupportive environment? Read More

2024 Federal Budget should fund GP-led living guidelines to make Australia healthier

The Royal Australian College of GPs (RACGP) is calling on the Federal Government to invest in ‘living’ guidelines for preventive care so patient care can be informed by the latest evidence and improve health outcomes. Read More
Advertisement