Serial rapist fears he will lose his ‘cell privileges’

WA’s most notorious serial rapist Garry Narkle fears losing his “cell allocation and privileges” if he has to appear in court in person at his release hearing next month.

The 64-year-old appeared in the Supreme Court on Friday morning via video link from Bunbury Regional Prison ahead of his September 3 and 4 hearing to determine his possible release, after serving 10 years without parole for six counts of raping a homeless man in Queens Park.

He was due to be released on June 9 but State lawyers applied to have Narkle formally named a dangerous sex offender, which could see him kept behind bars.

The Prisoner Review Board has also ordered Narkle be placed under a post sentence supervision order, saying his risk of attacking another victim had not decreased despite spending the past 10 years in jail.

Narkle’s lawyer Mara Barone confirmed on Friday to Chief Justice Peter Quinlan that Narkle would be requesting to appear via video link for the September hearing.

She said this was because of his physical health, the process of having to be transported to Perth, and because he would be away for several days and could “lose his cell allocation and privileges and his settled regime”.

She also said he suffered chronic anxiety and if he was to give evidence, it would be best for him to do this in a “familiar environment”.

However, expert reports needed for the hearing have not been received so it is unclear if Narkle will give evidence in rebuttal.

Justice Quinlan said it would be “necessary” for Narkle to personally appear in court if he wanted to provide evidence.

“Given the amount of material filed thus far by the State and the issues involved, my present inclination is if Mr Narkle wishes to give evidence on the application, he should be in person,” he said.

“Matters such as this with potentially very serious orders should take place in presence of the person in the most direct way possible.”

Justice Quinlan said if Narkle did not want to give evidence, he could consider granting the request to appear via video link.

Standing to indicate he wished to speak, Narkle said he would not be giving evidence.

“I won’t hold you to that,” Justice Quinlan said.

Narkle’s lawyer said given they had not yet seen the expert report, she had “not completed all the advice”.

Justice Quinlan moved to adjourn the matter to another directions hearing this week in the hopes the reports would be received and Narkle’s representation could give a better indication of whether evidence would be given.

Narkle, who was once labelled a “serial sex monster” in State Parliament by former attorney-general Jim McGinty, has been convicted of sex offences against 14 women and girls over three decades.

This includes being jailed in 1985 for raping an 18-year-old girl three times, in 2000 for an assault on a 15-year-old girl, and in 2002 for repeatedly raping a 17-year-old girl near Mundaring Weir.

In 2010, Narkle was jailed for 10 years without parole after being found guilty of six counts of raping a homeless man he met at an ATM in Queens Park.

He drugged and raped the man in his campervan after threatening him with violence.