EXCLUSIVE: Iraqi refugee, 39, sobs hysterically in court saying ‘only God can help me’ as he faces jail and being deported for raping a 22-year-old woman in a dark Sydney laneway
- Sayer Alenezi, 39, sobbed, wailed and rocked back and forth in court on Friday
- Alenezi had pleaded guilty to raping a woman in a dark Sydney laneway in 2019
- But there were dramatic scenes in court as he prepared to be sentenced
An Iraqi refugee who pleaded guilty to raping a woman in a dark Sydney alleyway has broken down in court after his barrister announced he was pulling out of the case.
Sayer Hamood Jaber Alenezi, 39, sobbed, wailed and rocked back and forth as he faced a judge at the Downing Centre District Court on Friday.
Alenezi was expected to be sentenced after pleading guilty to a charge of sexual intercourse without consent relating to a horror late night 2019 incident.
‘The accused was a stranger to (the victim) and the offence happened in a dark alleyway, not far from Oxford Street within the city,’ prosecutor Megan Heywood told the court.
But there were dramatic scenes when Judge David Arnott SC prepared to hear the victim read her impact statement and sentence the offender.
Sayer Hamood Jaber Alenezi rocked back and forth, cradled his head in his hands and wailed during what was supposed to be his sentencing for raping a woman in a dark alleyway in the Sydney CBD in late 2019
Alenezi’s barrister told the court that his client had been ‘hysterical’ and had raised ‘issues’ with his plea during an earlier conference.
He added Alenezi had post-traumatic stress disorder as a result of ‘very traumatic life experiences’ and ‘I can’t continue to act for him’.
‘He became somewhat hysterical at times,’ the lawyer said. ‘I think I will have no option (but) to seek leave of the court to withdraw’.
Alenezi then appeared in court via audio-visual link where he made bizarre and defamatory comments about his own lawyer via an Arabic interpreter.
‘I’ve got only to God to help … I don’t have money to get (a lawyer) and I have only God.’
Alenezi pleaded guilty to sexually assaulting a 22-year-old woman in late 2019
Alenezi is pictured outside court earlier in the case. He has since been refused bail and is behind bars at the Long Bay correctional centre
After several minutes listening to a distressed Alenezi speak via an interpreter, Judge Arnott told him ‘you need to calm down.’
Ms Heywood for the prosecution noted that Alenezi’s crime had weighed heavily on his victim – who had required psychiatric treatment herself as a result of the attack.
‘(She) has been devastated by this offending.’
Judge Arnott said Alenezi wasn’t in a fit state to proceed and the case was adjourned to a later date so he can decide who his lawyer will be.
Alenezi, who was on a bridging visa, is likely to be deported at the conclusion of a likely jail sentence, the maximum sentence of which is 14 years’ imprisonment.
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