An Afghan immigrant has been refused bail after being charged with allegedly raping an elderly woman in her own home in Sydney’s west.
Faisal Siddiqi, 41, was arrested at his home in Fairfield on Friday and charged with sexual intercourse without consent and common assault over the alleged attack on an 84-year-old woman in Merrylands on Tuesday, which police say took place after he helped her carry her shopping home.
Siddiqi on Saturday applied for bail at Parramatta Bail Court where police prosecutors alleged he pushed the woman onto her bed and sexually assaulted her before urinating in a bucket and stealing her car keys, the Fairfield Advance reported.
Prosecutors told the court they had CCTV footage along with DNA swabs from the woman’s body and the bucket, and said forensic analysis results were expected within the week.
The court also heard Siddiqi was out on seven community corrections orders at the time of the alleged assault.
Siddiqi’s lawyer Mariah Maltezos told the court her client denied the allegations, and said he did not fit the alleged victim’s initial description and that the missing house keys were not found during a police search.
“The identification provided by the complainant is not similar to the age or appearance of this applicant,” she told the court.
“On page 4 of the fact sheet the complainant describes the man as aged 20 to 30s, speaking Hindi and dark clothing.”
But Magistrate Les Brennan refused bail, describing the prosecution case as “very strong” and the alleged offence as “serious”. Mr Brennan said Siddiqi would face a long prison sentence if convicted, and feared he would breach bail if the forensic results turn out to be a match.
Siddiqi has not entered pleas and will face Parramatta Local Court again on June 19.
Header image credit: Left, right, Faisal Siddiqi (supplied).
