Vic: Call for serial rapist to receive indefinite jail sentence

AAP General News (Australia)
12-06-2006
Vic: Call for serial rapist to receive indefinite jail sentence

A Victorian judge will continue to hear argument in a pre-sentencing hearing today
.. that's been told to give a serial rapist an indefinite prison sentence.

WILLIAM CRAIG FORDE appeared before the Victorian County Court yesterday for the hearing
.. over the rape of a young woman he kidnapped from a Ballarat shop in February this year.

The court was previously told the woman was repeatedly raped during a 29-hour ordeal
and driven more than 800 kilometres through country Victoria.

The 49-year-old rapist has pleaded guilty to repeated rape and a host of other charges
.. and had already spent 15 years in jail for the rapes of three other women between 1988
and 1998.

Crown prosecutor JEREMY RAPKE has told the court the prosecution wants an indefinite
jail sentence for FORDE .. saying he's a serious danger to the community.

But FORDE'S lawyer MICHAEL O'CONNELL says an indefinite sentence is unnecessary and
setting a finite sentence would still protect the community.

AAP RTV mok/dk/wz/tm/cp

KEYWORD: FORDE (MELBOURNE)

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