A woman held captive by a man at a Lyneham home in June 2024 has told an ACT Supreme Court pre-sentence hearing the abuse left her with lasting trauma. Sisituutuumata Fulivai, 47, was found guilty earlier this year of 20 charges, including forcible confinement and rape. The woman, then 24, escaped and ran naked onto the street, where police found her. In her statement she described crippling PTSD and panic attacks. Fulivai will be sentenced at a later date.
A fourth woman has told a London court that Russell Brand sexually assaulted her at the radio station where she worked, in front of his entourage. She told the jury Brand kissed her and touched her without consent, and that the men with him did nothing. Brand, 51, has pleaded not guilty to seven charges covering six women between 1999 and 2009. Evidence from a Channel 4 employee and a sixth woman was also heard, and the trial continues.
A domestic violence survivor has told a South Australian court her former partner raped and tormented her between 2018 and 2023. Kellie Franklin read a victim impact statement in the District Court, describing ongoing night and day terrors and hyper-vigilance. She said she wanted Joshua Armstrong-Leckstrom kept behind bars for the rest of his life. He was found guilty of four counts of rape and two counts of aggravated assault causing harm, and pleaded guilty to two further aggravated assault counts. He returns to court for a pre-sentence hearing next month.
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Russell Brand has appeared at Southwark Crown Court for a pre-trial hearing ahead of his rape and sexual assault trial. The 51-year-old comedian, actor, and podcaster denies all charges, including three counts of rape, three sexual assault charges, and one indecent assault allegation. The trial is set to begin on October 12 and is expected to last up to 10 weeks. Brand arrived at court in a black Mercedes, wearing a grey suit jacket and sunglasses, and remained silent as he entered the building.
A 34-year-old man has been jailed for at least seven years after raping a four-year-old girl in a Darwin town camp. Nathaniel Farrell lured the child away with watermelon while she played in a front yard, then assaulted her in a house. The court heard Farrell had a history of violence against women and posed a continuing danger to the community. Chief Justice Michael Grant described the attack as brazen and toward the upper end of seriousness, with the child being very young and vulnerable.
An 18-year-old has avoided jail for repeatedly raping a woman he met at a Canberra house party in 2025. The ACT Supreme Court heard the teenager, then 16, forcefully assaulted the 18-year-old for about 20 minutes after they left the party. The teen, who cannot be named, pleaded guilty to sexual intercourse without consent and was sentenced to 18 months' jail, fully suspended for a good behaviour order.
