National

Man found not guilty of child rape at retrial

By AAP Newswire

Jul 20, 2023

A statue of Themis, the Greek God of Justice (file image) — A man has been cleared of sexually abusing a girl after the High Court ordered a retrial. -AAP Image

A Queensland man has been found not guilty of sexual offences against a 12-year-old girl after being granted a retrial on appeal.

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Malcolm Lawrence Orreal, 62, of Deception Bay, faced a four-day trial by jury in Brisbane District Court for two counts of rape and three counts of indecent treatment of a child under 16.

The alleged victim had stayed overnight at Mr Orreal's home on January 29, 2017 and later claimed she had been assaulted.

The jury found Mr Orreal not guilty of all charges after about two days of deliberations.

He had been found guilty of the charges following a trial in March 2019 but won the right to a retrial following a successful appeal to the High Court.

In December 2021, the High Court quashed Mr Orreal's convictions on the basis the first jury was presented with prejudicial evidence.

During the retrial this month, defence barrister Rachael Taylor told the jury her client did not dispute sleeping in the same bed as the girl but denied he committed any offences against her.

Crown prosecutor Sam Rigby told jurors there was no DNA evidence in the case and they would have to decide whether the alleged victim was an honest and reliable witness.

1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732)

National Sexual Abuse and Redress Support Service 1800 211 028

By AAP Newswire

Australian Associated Press