Arabic version: محكمة الأطفال في كيرنز تنظر في قضية مسؤولية عن الاغتصاب

According to ABC News, a 17-year-old boy has pleaded not guilty to five rape charges in a judge-only trial in Queensland Children’s Court in Cairns. Prosecutors allege he aided and enabled the alleged assaults by detaining the woman’s partner at knifepoint during a home invasion in Manunda.

Police allege three boys broke into the Cairns property at about 3am on February 21, 2025. The prosecution says two boys raped the woman multiple times while the defendant kept her partner in another room. Crown prosecutor Nicole Friedewald told the court the defendant did not physically rape the woman, but his conduct prevented her partner from intervening.

Ms Friedewald said the woman was woken by noises and a light approaching the couple’s bedroom. Prosecutors allege the boys threatened the couple with a tomahawk, knife and axe, and that the woman was raped on the patio and in a spare bedroom. The court heard the couple later woke neighbours to alert police. The defendants and alleged victims cannot be identified for legal reasons.

The defendant pleaded guilty to six other charges, including stealing, going armed in company and detaining the couple at their home. Defence barrister Timothy Grau said he would argue his client did not hear or understand alleged comments that a co-accused intended to rape the woman, noting English was not his first language. The trial is expected to last two days, while the cases of the two co-accused remain before the courts.