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Encyclopedia > Sydney gang rapes
Bilal Skaf - led and orchestrated the three August 2000 attacks.
Bilal Skaf - led and orchestrated the three August 2000 attacks.

The Sydney gang rapes were a series of gang rape attacks by a group of up to fourteen Muslim Lebanese Australian men led by Bilal Skaf, against white[1] Australian girls, some as young as 14, in Sydney, Australia in 2000. The crimes, decried as racially motivated hate crimes by some commentators [2][3][4] saw blanket media coverage, the passing of new laws, and over 240 years in jail time handed out to nine men. Image File history File links Skafbilal. ... Image File history File links Skafbilal. ... Bilal Skaf, jailed for leading gang rapes in Sydney in 2000. ... For the domesticated crop plant called rape, see rapeseed. ... There is also a collection of Hadith called Sahih Muslim A Muslim (Arabic: مسلم, Persian: Mosalman or Mosalmon Urdu: مسلمان, Turkish: Müslüman, Albanian: Mysliman, Bosnian: Musliman) is an adherent of the religion of Islam. ... Lebanese Australians are the ninth largest ethnic group in Australia, numbering 162,239 or 0. ... Bilal Skaf, jailed for leading gang rapes in Sydney in 2000. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... The Sydney Opera House on Sydney Harbour Sydney (pronounced ) is the most populous city in Australia, with a metropolitan area population of over 4,200,000 people, and 151,920, in the city limits. ... 2000 (MM) was a leap year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... A hate crime (bias crime), loosely defined, is a crime committed because of the perpetrators prejudices. ...


In court transcripts, Judge Michael Finnane mused that the rapes were events "you hear about or read about only in the context of wartime atrocities". [1]

Contents

Attacks

August 10, 2000, Thursday
Attackers offered a ride and a portion of marijuana to two women aged 17 and 18. The women were taken under duress to Northcote Park, Greenacre where more collaborators were waiting, the women were then forced to fellate eight males.[5]
August 12, 2000, Saturday
A 16-year-old girl was brought to Gosling Park, Greenacre by her friend, 17-year-old Mohammed Skaf. At the park she was raped by Mohammed's brother Bilal Skaf, and one other man, with twelve other men present who were "standing around, laughing and talking in their own language".[6] The second man held a gun to her head and kicked her in the stomach, before she was able to escape.[7]
August 30, 2000, Wednesday
Another woman was approached by attackers at the Bankstown train station, who proposed she join them in smoking some marijuana at another location. She was taken to three separate locations by the men, raped 25 times by a total of fourteen men, in an ordeal that lasted six hours. After the attacks the woman was hosed down with a fire hose, the woman, who was known during the trial as 'C' to protect her identity, later told her story to 60 Minutes. She told of how the attackers called her an "Aussie Pig", asked her if "Leb cock tasted better than Aussie cock" and explained to her that she would now be raped "Leb-style".[8] [2]
September 4, 2000, Monday
Two women, both 16, were taken by the attackers from Beverly Hills train station to a house in another suburb, where three men repeatedly raped them over a period of five hours. The attackers told one of the victims at one point that "You deserve it because you're an Australian".[9]

August 10 is the 222nd day of the year (223rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 2000 (MM) was a leap year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Greenacre is a suburb, in south-western Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. ... Oral sex consists of all those sexual activities that involve the use of the mouth, tongue, etc. ... August 12 is the 224th day of the year (225th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 2000 (MM) was a leap year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Greenacre is a suburb, in south-western Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. ... Mohammed Skaf (born May 7, 1983) is a serial gang rapist. ... Bilal Skaf, jailed for leading gang rapes in Sydney in 2000. ... August 30 is the 242nd day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (243rd in leap years), with 123 days remaining. ... 2000 (MM) was a leap year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Bankstown is the principal railway station on the CityRail Bankstown line, for which the line is named. ... 60 Minutes premiered February 11, 1979. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into Lebanese Australian. ... September 4 is the 247th day of the year (248th in leap years). ... 2000 (MM) was a leap year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Beverly Hills railway station has an island platform. ...

Further attempted attacks

A further series of gang rapes were attempted, but thwarted. On Friday August 4, 2000 four of the attackers approached a fourteen year old girl on a train where she was threatened with violence, punched twice and slapped before escaping the would be rapists. [10] August 4 is the 216th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (217th in leap years), with 149 days remaining. ... 2000 (MM) was a leap year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ...


Attackers

  • Bilal Skaf led and orchestrated the three August 2000 attacks. He was initially sentenced to a total of 55 years imprisonment but had his prison time reduced by the New South Wales Court of Criminal Appeal to 28 years, with parole available after 22 years. However, on July 28, 2006 Acting Justice Jane Mathews added another ten years to his sentence for his role in the August 12 rape (his original conviction over the attack was quashed in 2004 and a retrial was ordered after it was revealed that two jurors had conducted their own investigations at Gosling Park).[11] Bilal Skaf will now be eligible for release on February 11, 2033. In March 2003, Skaf was charged with sending mail containing white powder to a corrections department official from prison in an apparent hoax terrorist act.[12]
  • Mohammed Skaf, younger brother of Bilal Skaf was also one of the gang rape attackers. He was gaoled for 32 years for his role in the gang rapes but has also had his sentence reduced on appeal, to 19 years with a non-parole period of 11 years. However, on July 28, 2006 he received an additional 15 years, with a minimum of seven and a half years over the Gosling Park attack. Mohammed Skaf will now be eligible for release on July 1, 2019.[6]
  • Belal Hajeid, then aged 20, was another gang rapist who was convicted and imprisoned for 23 years with a non-parole period of 15 years. Hajeid had his sentence later reduced on appeal.
  • Mohammed Sanoussi, then 18, gang rapist who was sentenced to 21 years with a non-parole period of 12 years for the August 10 and 30 rapes. Sanoussi had his sentence later reduced on appeal.
  • Mahmoud Sanoussi, then 17, is the brother of Mohammed Sanoussi who was sentenced to 11 years and three months imprisonment with parole available after six-and-a-half years. Mahmoud Sanoussi unsuccessfully appealed against his sentence in 2005.
  • Mahmoud Chami, (then 20) - attacker gaoled for 18 years with a non-parole period of ten years. Chami unsuccessfully appealed against his sentence in 2004.
  • "H" (Identity sealed), (then 19), was sentenced to 25 years with a non-parole period of 15 years. 'H' has successfully appealed and gained a reduction in his penalty.
  • Tayyab Sheikh, then 18, was sentenced to 15 years imprisonment with a non-parole period of nine years for his role in the August 30 rape.
  • Mohammed Ghanem, then 19, was the final person to be sentenced and was imprisoned for 40 years with a non-parole period of 26 years for two counts of rape.

There was evidence to convict only nine men of the fourteen suspects, and in total over 240 years of prison time was handed out for the rapes. Bilal Skaf, jailed for leading gang rapes in Sydney in 2000. ... For other uses, see August (disambiguation). ... The Supreme Court of New South Wales is the highest state court for the Australian State of New South Wales. ... July 28 is the 209th day (210th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar, with 156 days remaining. ... For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ... August 12 is the 224th day of the year (225th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... February 11 is the 42nd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Centuries: 20th century - 21st century - 22nd century Decades: 1980s 1990s 2000s 2010s 2020s - 2030s - 2040s 2050s 2060s 2070s 2080s Years: 2028 2029 2030 2031 2032 - 2033 - 2034 2035 2036 2037 2038 The year 2033 (MMXXXIII) in the Gregorian calendar corresponds to 5793-5794 in the Hebrew calendar. ... This article is becoming very long. ... Mohammed Skaf (born May 7, 1983) is a serial gang rapist. ... Bilal Skaf, jailed for leading gang rapes in Sydney in 2000. ... July 28 is the 209th day (210th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar, with 156 days remaining. ... For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ... July 1 is the 182nd day of the year (183rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar, with 183 days remaining. ... 2019 (MMXIX) will be a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Belal Hajeid is a convicted gang rapist. ... Mohammed Sanoussi is a convicted gang rapist. ... Mahmoud Sanoussi (born in 1985) is a convicted gang rapist. ... Mohammed Sanoussi is a convicted gang rapist. ... Mahmoud Chami (born in 1982) is a convicted gang rapist. ... H (born 21st April 1983) was a member of a Lebanese-Australian gang rape squad in the Sydney gang rapes which targeted white Australian females. ... Tayyab Sheikh is a convicted gang rapist. ... Mohammed Ghanem (born 1983) is a serial gang rapist. ...


Racial controversy

Conservative commentators such as Miranda Devine claimed that the crimes were racially motivated hate crimes[2][3][4] The Sydney Morning Herald reported that the rapists stated to a victim, during the attack, "You deserve it because you're an Australian" and "I'm going to fuck you Leb style". Miranda Devine is an Australian columnist and writer for The Sydney Morning Herald, noted for her conservative stance on a range of social and political issues, and for her defence of Howard government policy. ... A hate crime (bias crime), loosely defined, is a crime committed because of the perpetrators prejudices. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ...


At the same time, the crimes have been cited by Muslim Australians as contributing to an increase in racial vilification towards the Muslim community.[13]


New laws

The public uproar caused by the gang rapes led to the passage of new legislation through the Parliament of New South Wales, dramatically increasing the sentences for gang rapists by creating a new category of crime known as aggravated sexual assault in company.[14] Also in the course of one of the trials, the defendants refused counsel claiming that "all lawyers were against Muslims". This led to the contentious prospect of the defendants being able to cross examine the witnesses themselves, a situation that was averted by further legislation being put through the New South Wales parliament.[15] The Parliament of New South Wales consists of the Governor of New South Wales, the New South Wales Legislative Council and the New South Wales Legislative Assembly. ... There is also a collection of Hadith called Sahih Muslim A Muslim (Arabic: مسلم, Persian: Mosalman or Mosalmon Urdu: مسلمان, Turkish: Müslüman, Albanian: Mysliman, Bosnian: Musliman) is an adherent of the religion of Islam. ...


Actions taken by government ministers, including the then Premier of New South Wales, Bob Carr, who publicly identified the perpetrators' background, led to controversy. Ethnic community groups, including Keysar Trad of the Lebanese Muslim Association complained that Carr was smearing the entire Lebanese Muslim community with the crimes of a few of its members, and that his public comments would stir up ethnic hatred. [16] List of Premiers of New South Wales Before the 1890s there was no formal party system in New South Wales. ... Robert John Carr (born 28 September 1947), Australian politician, was Premier of New South Wales from 25 March 1995 to 3 August 2005. ... Keysar Trad talks to ABC News about the 2006 Israel-Lebanon conflict (July 2006) Keysar Trad is a spokesperson for a section of the Australian Muslim community. ... The Lebanese Moslems Association is an Australian non-profit welfare organization based in Lakemba, a south-western suburb of Sydney. ... Ethnic hatred, inter-ethnic hatred, racial hatred, or ethnic tension refers to sentiments and acts of prejudice and hostility towards an ethnic group in various degrees. ...


The first court case heard under the new sentencing regime concerned the gang rapes of two young caucasian women by Pakistani immigrants in Ashfield on July 28, 2002. The Ashfield gang rapes were a series sex attacks involving rape and indecent assault of as many as eighteen women which occurred in Ashfield, New South Wales, Australia in late 2001 and over a six month period in 2002. ... The 4th edition of Meyers Konversationslexikon (1885-1890) shows the Caucasian race (in blue) as comprising Aryans, Semites and Hamites. The Caucasian race (sometimes called the Caucasoid race) is defined by the Oxford English Dictionary as, relating to a broad division of humankind covering peoples from Europe, western Asia, Middle... Ashfield (pop. ... July 28 is the 209th day (210th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar, with 156 days remaining. ... For album titles with the same name, see 2002 (album). ...


SMS used as tool

The attackers used SMS and mobile phones to orchestrate the attacks, utilizing this technology to phone ahead to other attackers to co-ordinate timely transport of rape gang members to the locations where women were being held. Authorities later intercepted these phone records, and a small sample of this material was released to the media, the rest being too offensive to publicise. The attackers texted such messages as "When you are feeling down ...bash a Christian or Catholic and lift up".[17] and "I've got a slut with me bro, come to Punchbowl". [18] It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into Christianity. ... Look up slut in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Punchbowl is a suburb, in south-western Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. ...


Movie in the Making

A movie titled Wrong Girl directed by Michael Jenkins regarding the Sydney gang rapes (and specifically on the August 30 attack) is due to begin production in 2007. The film has received $51,000 in federal and NSW state funding and has drawn criticism from Police and Government ministers. [19] Michael Jenkins is the president of the Unification Church of America. ...


See also

Police observing crowds prior to confrontations The 2005 Sydney race riots were a series of ethnically motivated mob confrontations which originated in and around the beachfront suburb of Cronulla in Southern Sydney, a coastal region within the Metropolitan Area of Sydney, Australias largest city. ...

References

  1. ^ The term white in this context typically refers to Australian people of West European ancestry whose first language is English.
  2. ^ a b Tracy Bowden. "Ethnicity linked to brutal gang rapes", ABC, July 15, 2002. Retrieved on 2006-07-30. 
  3. ^ a b Miranda Devine. "Racist rapes: Finally the truth comes out", Sydney Morning Herald, July 13, 2002. Retrieved on 2006-07-30. 
  4. ^ a b Patrick Goodenough. "Gang Rape Convictions Trigger Ethnicity Debate", CNSnews.com, July 16, 2002. Retrieved on 2006-07-30. 
  5. ^ Judge Michael Finnane (23 August, 2002). R v H (sentencing remarks). Retrieved on 2006-07-30.
  6. ^ a b AAP. "Gang rapist Skaf gets 31 years", NEWS.com.au, July 28, 2006. Retrieved on 2006-07-30. 
  7. ^ AAP. "Victim 'happy' with Skaf rape sentence", The Age, July 28, 2006. Retrieved on 2006-07-30. 
  8. ^ "When race and rape collide", The Age, September 17, 2002. Retrieved on 2006-07-30. 
  9. ^ Hayes, Liz (September 2, 2001). Life Sentence: Transcript. 60 Minutes. Nine Network. Retrieved on 2006-07-30.
  10. ^ Crichton, Sarah. "Gang rapist jailed 25 years as judge finds grounds for leniency", Sydney Morning Herald, August 24, 2002. Retrieved on 2006-07-30. 
  11. ^ Wallace, Natasha. "Gang rapists re-sentenced", Sydney Morning Herald, July 28, 2006. Retrieved on 2006-07-30. 
  12. ^ Gibbs, Stephen. "Rapist out of sight but not out of mind", The Age, August 2, 2003. Retrieved on 2006-07-30. 
  13. ^ Brigid Delaney and Cynthia Banham. "Muslims feel the hands of racism tighten around them", Sydney Morning Herald, June 17, 2004. Retrieved on 2006-07-29. 
  14. ^ SECT 61JA. Crimes Act 1900. Australasian Legal Information Institute. Retrieved on 2006-07-30.
  15. ^ SECT 294A. Criminal Procedure Act 1986. Australasian Legal Information Institute. Retrieved on 2006-07-30.
  16. ^ Goodenough, Patrick. "Gang Rape Convictions Trigger Ethnicity Debate", Cybercast News Service, July 16, 2002. Retrieved on 2006-07-30. 
  17. ^ Candace Sutton and Eamonn Duff. "Rapist's loving family: Where did we fail our son?", Sydney Morning Herald, September 8, 2002. Retrieved on 2006-07-30. 
  18. ^ Sarah Crichton. "Sentence angers rape gang victims", The Age, August 24, 2002. Retrieved on 2006-07-30. 
  19. ^ "Gang rapist movie plans draw outrage", Yahoo7 News, Australian Associated Press, 2007-01-28. Retrieved on 2007-01-29. 

For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ... July 30 is the 211th day (212th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar, with 154 days remaining. ... For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ... July 30 is the 211th day (212th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar, with 154 days remaining. ... For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ... July 30 is the 211th day (212th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar, with 154 days remaining. ... For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ... July 30 is the 211th day (212th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar, with 154 days remaining. ... Australian Associated Press is Australias national news agency and is Australias largest independent originator and aggregator of news and information, serving the media, government, business and financial markets. ... For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ... July 30 is the 211th day (212th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar, with 154 days remaining. ... Australian Associated Press is Australias national news agency and is Australias largest independent originator and aggregator of news and information, serving the media, government, business and financial markets. ... For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ... July 30 is the 211th day (212th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar, with 154 days remaining. ... For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ... July 30 is the 211th day (212th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar, with 154 days remaining. ... Elizabeth Liz Hayes (born 23 May 1956) is an Australian television presenter. ... For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ... July 30 is the 211th day (212th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar, with 154 days remaining. ... For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ... July 30 is the 211th day (212th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar, with 154 days remaining. ... For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ... July 30 is the 211th day (212th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar, with 154 days remaining. ... For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ... July 30 is the 211th day (212th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar, with 154 days remaining. ... For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ... July 29 is the 210th day (211th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian Calendar, with 155 days remaining. ... // The Free Access to Law Movement is umbrella name for the collective of legal projects across several common law countries to provide free online access to legal information such as case law and legislation. ... For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ... July 30 is the 211th day (212th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar, with 154 days remaining. ... // The Free Access to Law Movement is umbrella name for the collective of legal projects across several common law countries to provide free online access to legal information such as case law and legislation. ... For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ... July 30 is the 211th day (212th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar, with 154 days remaining. ... For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ... July 30 is the 211th day (212th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar, with 154 days remaining. ... For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ... July 30 is the 211th day (212th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar, with 154 days remaining. ... For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ... July 30 is the 211th day (212th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar, with 154 days remaining. ... Australian Associated Press is Australias national news agency and is Australias largest independent originator and aggregator of news and information, serving the media, government, business and financial markets. ... 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the Anno Domini era. ... January 29 is the 29th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ...

External links

  • "Sentence Slashed: "Gang rapes not 'Worst Category'
  • "40 years jail for last of Nine gang rape offenders"
  • The West Australian ("Reign of terror by mobile phone and the promise of a smoke", July 31, 2002).
  • The Guardian: Racially Motivated Crime and Punishment
  • ABC TV's Four Corners: "...For being Lebanese
  • ABC TV: Sentencing hearing of Bilal Skaf
Crime in Australia
Regional crime: Timeline | Melbourne | Northern Territory | Western Australia | Sydney
Australian law: Courts | Criminal law | Law enforcement
Australian people: Bushrangers | Convicts | Criminals | Murderers | Prisoners
Australian prisons: ACT | NSW | NT | QLD | SA | TAS | VIC | WA
International: Crime by country


 

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