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A convicted pedophile who terrorized Sydney during a two-year crime spree in the 1990s, including the sexual assault of a girl, is locked in a legal battle with the state that wants to impose strict supervision orders on him after his release.
The state of New South Wales has filed an application with the High Court in an attempt to police notorious rapist Raymond Barry Cornwall following his release from jail last year.
Cornwall, 67, has spent most of his adult life in prison after being convicted of a series of sex offenses dating back to 1989 and repeated violations of supervision and probation orders.
High Court Justice Mark Ierace granted interim supervision orders that placed a number of strict conditions on Cornwall, including that he not view pornography or wear an electronic wristband monitor, and the state also sought a two-year order to keep an eye on it
Cornwall’s extensive criminal record and why authorities fear he could re-offend unless he is closely monitored was explained in a judgment handed down in the High Court this week.
The state of New South Wales is desperate for more surveillance on Raymond Barry Cornwall
The court heard that Cornwall was first jailed as a 19-year-old for drink-driving offences, as well as aged 20 and 30 for other driving offences.
Then, when he was 30, he committed his first sexual offenses, pleading guilty to a series of rapes committed against women during a shocking two-year spree in Sydney from 1991 to 1993.
In June 1991, he raped a woman at knifepoint when he forced her into the bush near the Georges River before stealing her bag.
Four months later, he sexually assaulted two 14-year-old girls after threatening to kill them as they walked through Western Sydney University.
He attempted to sexually assault a 15-year-old girl under similar circumstances three months later, when he grabbed his victim’s arm and pulled a knife on her.
She broke free and ran to safety.
He also sexually assaulted a 13-year-old girl on her way to school and another 18-year-old woman, assaulting her as she was pushing her bicycle down a lane.
He was released from prison in December 2007 after more than 14 years behind bars.
Just 30 minutes later, he removed his electronic monitoring bracelet and went on the run.
An off-duty police officer saw him on a beach two days later and was arrested again.
Cornwall was jailed again for another 15 months.
Authorities fear Raymond Barry Cornwall could re-offend unless he is closely monitored
Cornwall has previously been convicted of a series of sexual offenses dating back to 1989 (file image of a traumatized woman)
He was released again in March 2009, but was returned to custody just six months after he was found in a tree with a bottle of whiskey and threatened to harm himself, resulting in another 20 months in jail for failing to comply with orders.
While Cornwall was in custody, police used emerging DNA technology to link him to the rape of a woman in Pottsville, northern New South Wales, in September 1989.
He pleaded guilty to having sex without consent and to arresting a person for gain and was jailed for another four and a half years.
Cornwall was released in June 2015 and before being arrested again in April 2019.
He fled from the police after they requested to see his phone and a search on his device turned up a video of him masturbating on a train in front of a female passenger.
Cornwall was jailed for two years and police also found a cache of 112 child abuse images, some of which showed the vile exploitation and abuse of pre-pubescent children.
As a result, another two years and three months were added to his sentence.
He was allowed to return to the community on probation in March last year, however that order, which placed strict conditions on him, will expire in March.
Photos of Raymond Cornwall released by police after they sought his arrest for crimes on a train in 2019
Judge Ierace said that although Cornwall had not been in trouble since his most recent release, when he was last arrested his crimes were only discovered because he was subject to a supervision order.
Judge Ierace granted a 28-day interim supervision order which imposed a long series of conditions in Cornwall.
They included that he was wearing an electronic ankle monitor, was abiding by a 9:00pm to 6:00am curfew, did not possess a passport and was not leaving New South Wales.
Under the orders, Cornwall is prohibited from going to nurseries and schools, amusement parks, playgrounds and any residence where a person under the age of 18 lives.
He is also prohibited from viewing pornographic material and must undergo psychological and psychiatric evaluation and counseling.
The matter will return to court next month when the state tries to impose a two-year control order on Cornwall.
Raymond Barry Cornwall (pictured) has spent most of his adult life behind bars.