An aged-care burglar has been found guilty of sexual assault after a judge rejected a claim the 76-year-old frail victim attacked the intruder.
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Hayden Carl Skinner, 31, molested the elderly woman during a burglary at an aged-care facility at Coffs Harbour on the NSW north coast in the early hours of January 1, 2024.
He testified he had only broken into the dark room to look for valuables to pay off a drug debt and that he was attacked and grabbed by the 76-year-old after she woke up.
He denied any sexual contact.
But the claims have been rejected after a NSW District Court trial before Judge Michael McHugh.
The judge found Skinner guilty on Wednesday of one count of aggravated sexual intercourse without consent.
Judge McHugh heard that the elderly woman - who has since passed away due to unrelated causes - was seen naked from the waist down and screaming in the facility's hallway after the rape.
She gave several accounts in the hours after, including to her son, his partner and a nurse, that she had been attacked by a masked man in her room.
Her pants, underwear and incontinence pad were found by police next to her bed.
Skinner's DNA was found on her clothing, genitals and under her fingernails, the court heard.
The burglar scaled the fence and entered the resident's room through a sliding door that had been left unlocked after she had gone outside to watch a storm, the judge-alone trial was told.
He claimed she asked him "who the hell" he thought he was after spotting him in the dark and that she had grabbed him, pulling him onto her bed in a bear hug.
He said she had grabbed his genitals and hair, and wrapped her legs around his waist before he finally broke free.
Public defender Peter Pearsall contended that the elderly woman was an unreliable witness who had shown a "racial attitude".
Skinner will remain behind bars where he has been since his arrest days after the sexual assault.
He will next appear at Coffs Harbour District Court on February 2 when a date for a sentence hearing will be set.
1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732)
National Sexual Abuse and Redress Support Service 1800 211 028
Australian Associated Press
