Text message twist in case of Channel Seven TV star accused of torture and assault

A Channel 7 TV personality accused of a series of allegations of abuse and torture is facing a delay in his case after a court was told a ‘significant’ amount of material, including text messages, remains outstanding.

In August 2023, police first laid multiple child abuse charges against the man and his partner, with the woman facing nearly 80 charges, including rape, indecent treatment of children under 16, torture and sexual assault.

The police suspect that the facts took place between 2005 and 2020.

The man faces six charges of assault occasioning actual bodily harm, two charges of assault occasioning actual bodily harm while armed/in company, two charges of common assault, one charge of observations or recordings invading privacy and two counts of torture.

The media has been unable to identify the pair – who appeared together on a prominent Channel 7 program – after the woman was given a sweeping non-publication order by a magistrate over concerns about her potential for self-harm following further reporting in the media.

The man’s case was briefly discussed at the Brisbane Magistrates Court on Monday.

The court was told the man’s lawyers had received a partial piece of evidence and needed three weeks to review it and confirm their client’s instructions.

But police prosecutors said a “significant” amount of material remained outstanding.

“Our office sent an email to the arresting officer on February 13,” a prosecutor told Deputy Chief Magistrate Anthony Gett.

“There is the statement of a witness… a number of digital recordings of special witnesses I am told, as well as screenshots of text messages.”

Magistrate Gett granted a four-week adjournment in accordance with the prosecution’s requests.

The man’s case will be submitted to the court again for hearing on March 18. His bail was increased.

The woman’s case will be heard at Richlands Magistrates Court on Tuesday.

She was initially charged with 36 offenses related to the alleged serious child abuse allegations, and police charged her with a further 38 offenses on November 7 last year.

Court documents seen by NCA NewsWire show these charges include further allegations of rape and child abuse spanning several locations in Queensland dating back several years.

In October last year, the woman was given a non-publication order by Magistrate Aaron Simpson after he found she was at risk of harm to herself if further media reporting identified her.

His ruling came after she tried to harm herself last month, court documents show.

Queensland legislation previously prevented media outlets from identifying people accused of a “prescribed sexual offence” – including rape, attempted rape, assault with intent to commit rape, and sexual assault.

The media have been unable to identify the pair, who appeared together on a prominent Channel 7 programme. The Channel 7 logo is shown

Changes to the legislation on October 3 relaxed restrictions on identifying people accused of the above crimes.

Some of the more high-profile cases identified as a result include Bruce Lehrmann, previously referred to as a ‘high profile man’, and Ashley Paul Griffith, a childcare worker accused of a series of abuse crimes.

Both cases are still pending in court and no pleas have been entered.

Magistrate Simpson’s ruling on the woman’s identity was one of the first non-publication orders carried out after Queensland’s new sexual offenses identification laws were introduced.