Man pleads guilty to assaulting boy in Dalyellup shopping centre toilet, denies indecently touching him

A 19-year-old man, who was accompanied by his carer at the time, held an 11-year-old boy hostage in a toilet within a Bunbury shopping centre and assaulted him. The man, whose identity has been suppressed, appeared in Bunbury Magistrates Court on Monday, where he pleaded guilty to charges of deprivation of liberty, three counts of aggravated common assault and common assault. The man also stands accused of indecently dealing with the boy but pleaded not guilty to this charge. He was exempted from attending the court hearing, with his counsel entering the pleas on his behalf. The court was told the public advocate of guardianship also approved the pleas. It was said in court, that about 3pm on November 23, 2021, the man entered a public toilet inside Dalyellup Shopping Centre. While inside the toilet, the then-teenager held an 11-year-old boy against his will and assaulted him. The accused was accompanied by a female support worker at the time of offending, when he entered the public toilets alone. The then-teenager, who is now 20, has “significant intellectual disabilities” including ADHD, autism spectrum disorder and chromosomal abnormalities, and has not appeared in the courtroom since his first hearing on November 25 last year. The man’s bail was extended with strict conditions, including having no contact with any child aged under 18 years, protective conditions for the alleged victim and being banned from entering or being within 500m of Dalyellup Shopping Centre. No detailed facts on the assault were read out to the court. The man is set to reappear in court in March.