The man accused of raping former Liberal staffer Brittany Higgins in Parliament House has been ordered to appear before court next month.
The 26-year-old will face one charge of sexual intercourse without consent and could face up to 12 years in jail.
Ms Higgins made headlines in February when she claimed she was raped by a colleague in then defence minister Linda Reynolds’ Parliament House office in March 2019.
Former Liberal staffer Brittany Higgins (pictured) alleged she was raped in Parliament House
She reported the alleged incident in April 2019 but did not make a formal complaint until February this year.
Police investigated and have ordered the alleged attacker to appear before court in September.
The Australian Federal Police said in a statement: ‘A 26-year-old man has been summonsed to appear before the ACT Magistrates Court for an alleged sexual assault in 2019.
‘Police will allege the man had sexual intercourse with a woman without consent at Parliament House on Saturday, 23 March 2019.
‘Detectives from ACT Policing’s Criminal Investigations – Sexual Assault and Child Abuse Team, the specialist team dedicated to investigating sexual assaults in the ACT, first received a report in April 2019.
‘The investigation remained open and in February 2021 a formal complaint was made. Detectives have since spoken to a number of witnesses and collected evidence as part of the investigation.
‘Officers today (Friday, 6 August 2021) served the man’s legal representative with a summons to appear before the ACT Magistrates Court on 16 September 2021.’
Ms Higgins received a wave of support from women around Australia when she came forward with her story in an interview with Network 10 in February.
A month later she addressed a women’s march on Parliament House, wearing suffragette white.
Former Liberal staffer Brittany Higgins addressed the Women’s March 4 Justice in Canberra on March 15
Source: Daily Mail
