Two Men Charged with Sexually Assaulting Three Women Over 7 Years

The New South Wales Police Force reports that a second man has been charged over allegations of sexually abusing three women on the Central Coast over a seven-year period.

Detectives attached to Tuggerah Lakes Police District established Strike Force Zetter after allegedly discovering a substantial quantity of covertly filmed sexual material during an examination of electronic devices seized from a property in Tumbi Umbi.

The investigation has resulted in two men, aged 39 and 41, being charged with multiple sexual offences.

The evidence

Police assert that they seized approximately 120 electronic storage devices from the residence in December 2025 while investigating an alleged domestic violence incident.

They say that an initial examination resulted in the discovered of a large quantity of covertly recorded sexual material.

This led to the establishment of Strike Force Zetter to further investigate the material and identify potential victims and offenders.

Police allege that investigators ultimately identified approximately 2.5 million files containing evidence of sexual and physical abuse involving three women aged between 29 and 31.

They claim the abuse spans a seven-year period.

First man 

On Monday, 12 October 2026, detectives attended a facility in Wellington NSW, where they arrested a 39-year-old man.

He was subsequently charged with 210 offences including sexual intercourse without consent, which is also known as sexual assault and recording an intimate image without consent.

He has been refused bail and is scheduled to appear before Wyong Local Court on 8 December 2026.

Second man

Following further inquiries, detectives attended a property in Kanwal at approximately 4.45pm on Monday, 12 October 2026 where they arrested 41-year-old man.

He was taken to Wyong Police Station and charged with three counts of sexual assault.

He was also refused bail and is scheduled to appear before Wyong Local Court on 9 December 2026.

Police have confirmed that Strike Force Zetter remains active, with further arrests anticipated.

The offence of sexual intercourse without consent in NSW

Sexual intercourse without consent is an offence under section 61I of the Crimes Act 1900 (NSW) (‘the Act’) which carries a maximum penalty of 14 years’ imprisonment.

The offence is also known as ‘sexual assault’, and it occurs where a person “has sexual intercourse with another person without the consent of the other person and who knows that the other person does not consent to the sexual intercourse”.

‘Sexual intercourse’ is defined by section 61H of the Act as:

“(a) sexual connection occasioned by the penetration to any extent of the genitalia (including a surgically constructed vagina) of a female person or the anus of any person by:

(i) any part of the body of another person, or

(ii) any object manipulated by another person,

except where the penetration is carried out for proper medical purposes, or

(b) sexual connection occasioned by the introduction of any part of the penis of a person into the mouth of another person, or

(c) cunnilingus, or

(d) the continuation of sexual intercourse…”

Section 61HE of the Act provides that a person consents to sexual activity if he or she freely and voluntarily agrees to it.

The section proceeds to state that an alleged offender knows there is no consent if he or she engages in sexual activity, or incites anyone to do so, in circumstances where he or she:

• knows the alleged victim does not consent, or
• is reckless as to whether the alleged victim consents, or
• has no reasonable grounds to believe the alleged victim consents.

In deciding whether there is consent, the court must consider any steps taken by the alleged offender to ascertain whether there is consent.

The court cannot take into account any self-induced intoxication by the alleged offender.

The section makes clear there is no consent where the alleged victim:

• does not have the capacity to consent due to their age; the age of consent in NSW is generally 16 years, or 18 years where the complainant is under the defendant’s ‘special care’, or
• does not have the capacity to consent due to a lack of cognitive ability, or
• does not have the opportunity to consent because they are unconscious or asleep, or
• consents because of threats of force or terror, or
• consents due to being unlawfully detained, or
• consents because of a mistaken belief:

(a) as to the identity of the alleged offender,

(b) that the two are married,

(c) that the activity is for health or hygienic purposes, or

(d) that arises through any fraud.

The grounds upon which it may be established that the alleged victim did not consent include that he or she:

• was substantially intoxicated,
• was intimidated, coerced or threatened in any way, or
• was under the authority or trust of the alleged offender.

The section further makes clear that a failure to resist the activity not in itself to be regarded as establishing consent.

The offence of recording an intimate image without consent in NSW

Recording an intimate image without consent is an offence under section 91P of the Crimes Act 1900 (NSW) which carries a maximum penalty of three years in prison.

The section states that a person is guilty of the offence if he or she:

• Records an intimate image of another person,
• Does so intentionally,
• Does so without the consent of the other person, and
• Does so knowing the other person did not consent, or being reckless as to whether the other person consented or not.

A person is reckless if he or she foresaw the possibility the other person was not consenting but went ahead with their conduct regardless.

‘Record’ means to record, or take or capture an image by any means.

An ‘image’ means a still or moving image, whether or not altered.

An ‘intimate image’ is:

• An image of a person’s private parts, or of a person engaged in a private act, in circumstances in which a reasonable person would reasonably expect to be afforded privacy, or
• An image that has been altered to appear to show a person’s private parts, or a person engaged in a private act, in circumstances in which a reasonable person would reasonably expect to be afforded privacy.

‘Private parts’ are:

• A person’s genital area or anal area, whether bare or covered by underwear, or
• The breasts of a female person, or transgender or intersex person identifying as female, whether or not the breasts are sexually developed.

A person is engaged in a ‘private act’ if:

• He or she is in a state of undress, using the toilet, showering or bathing, engaged in a sexual act of a kind not ordinarily done in public, or engaged in any other like activity, and
• The circumstances are such that a reasonable person would reasonably expect to be afforded privacy.

Section 910 of the Act outlines the meaning of consent.

The section states that a person consents to the recording of an intimate image if he or she freely and voluntarily agrees to the recording of the intimate image.

It further states a person does not consent if he or she:

• Is under the age of 16 years or does not otherwise have the capacity to consent, including due to cognitive incapacity, or
• Does not have the opportunity to consent because the person is unconscious or asleep, or
• Consented because of threats of force or terror (whether the threats are against, or the terror is instilled in, that person or any other person), or
• Consented because the person was unlawfully detained.

This section makes clear that the above grounds are not the only ones which can be considered when determining whether a person consented.

A prosecution for recording an intimate image without consent cannot be commenced against a person under the age of 16 years without the approval of the Director of Public Prosecutions.

Legal defences

In addition to having to prove each of the components, or ‘elements’ of the offences beyond a reasonable doubt, the prosecution must also disprove to the same high standard any legal defence that arises from the evidence in the case.

A person is entitled to an acquittal, being a not guilty verdict, if the prosecution is unable to do so.

Legal defences to sexual offences include:

• Duress, which is where a person engaged in the act due to continuing threats or coercion sufficient to justify the actions,
• Mental illness, which is where a person did not understand the nature or quality of their actions, or did not understand it was wrong, due to a mental health impairment or cognitive impairment, or
• Self-defence, which where a person engaged in the act to defend him or herself, or another person, and the conduct was proportionate and reasonable.