Terence Darrell Kelly has told a court he did not assault a police officer while in custody following his arrest over the abduction of four-year-old Carnarvon girl Cleo Smith.
The 36-year-old appeared in Carnarvon Magistrates Court via a video link from Perth's Casuarina Prison on Friday, where he pleaded not guilty to the assault charge.
The alleged assault occurred in the Carnarvon police holding cells on November 4, 2021, the day after Cleo was found and Kelly was arrested.
In January, Kelly confessed to kidnapping Cleo last October.
He admitted snatching her from her family tent at a Quobba Blowholes campsite, north-east of Carnarvon, and holding her captive for 18 days.
Kelly is due to appear in Perth's District Court via video link from prison in May.
