Flat intruder admits Cosy Dell sex attack

Residents of Cosy Dell Rd said news of the incident had spread rapidly and had put them on edge....
Residents of Cosy Dell Rd said news of the incident had spread rapidly and had put them on edge. Photo: Stephen Jaquiery
A Dunedin man has admitted breaking into a Cosy Dell flat and sexually violating a woman but denies other charges.

The 36-year-old appeared in the Dunedin District Court this morning and pleaded guilty to two charges of sexual violation and one charge of burglary but denied strangulation and a third charge of sexual violation.

All charges stem from events on February 4 and relate to the same complainant.

Judge Dominic Flatley continued the man’s name suppression to protect his fair trial rights.

The defendant was remanded in custody and was expected to appear again in July.

After the man was charged, a source told the Otago Daily Times the complainant woke in the early hours of February 4 to a masked man in her bedroom with his hand over her mouth. 

They said the alleged sex attack took place over a protracted period and the defendant allegedly made the woman wash her hands before he left. 

It is also understood the defendant took bed sheets with him when he made his escape. 

Residents of Cosy Dell Rd previously told the ODT news of the incident had spread rapidly and had put them on edge. 

The street has gained something of a reputation in recent years and many of the flats there are equipped with CCTV and security lights. 

Last year, a 21-year-old student dubbed “The Cosy Dell Creeper” was caught on camera tiptoeing around one flat’s laundry and later pleaded guilty to three burglaries and a charge of unlawfully being in an enclosed yard. 

In December, the underwear thief won a High Court appeal which meant his convictions were wiped and his name was permanently suppressed. 

felicity.dear@odt.co.nz

 

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