NSW MP and former state Liberal minister Gareth Ward has pleaded not guilty to sexual offending against a teenage boy and a man.
Police allege Ward indecently assaulted a 17-year-old boy at Meroo Meadow on NSW’s south coast in February 2013 and raping a 27-year-old man in Sydney in September 2015.
He has been charged with five criminal offences including sexual intercourse without consent, three counts of assault with indecency, and common assault which is an alternative charge to one of the indecency charges.
The independent politician was arraigned at Nowra District Court on Tuesday where he pleaded not guilty to all counts.
The matter has been adjourned to Downing Centre District Court on April 3 while Ward’s bail continues.
The former Liberal minister was dumped from the party and suspended from parliament a year ago following the charges and recontested the seat of Kiama as an independent MP.
Suspended members are excluded from parliamentary precincts and prohibited from participating in the house or committees under a separate standing order.
A parliamentary committee last May recommended Ward keep his salary and electorate office until a court determines whether he is guilty, arguing the crossbencher is entitled to a presumption of innocence.
According to the latest numbers from the ABC, Labor candidate Katelin McInerney has pulled ahead of Ward by about 700 votes. But Ms McInerney’s lead is quickly slipping away and ABC’s chief election analyst Antony Green says the seat will likely fall to the independent.
– AAP
