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A woman walked carefree past the gates of St Mary’s Cathedral in Sydney’s CBD on her way home from a bar one Saturday night, until a suspicious person abruptly approached her.
The stranger had stalked her every step for 11 minutes. At 11.44pm, they ran up behind her, grabbed her and pulled her towards a dark corner of the cathedral building, where they tried to rape her.
Benjamin Charles Jones, a transgender woman also known as Lisa Jones, was jailed on Friday for a maximum of three years and four months for what the victim described as an “unprecedented, unexpected, and aggressive act” which permanently eroded her sense of safety.
The 49-year-old registered child sex offender had a criminal history spanning multiple states and countries and had been released from the courts a month before the attack for failing to notify police of their address.
The court heard Jones was recently diagnosed with schizophrenia and told a psychiatrist that they lived in an “astral world” where the devil made a deal with their “sex spirit” that forced them to “engage in sex rituals”. The psychiatrist found these beliefs likely contributed to their behaviour.
Stalking captured on CCTV
Judge Troy Anderson, SC, said the victim met some friends at a bar at 10.30pm on October 22, 2024, and began walking home about an hour later.
At 11.30pm, CCTV footage recorded her walking along Pitt Street while Jones trailed her at a distance. They stalked her for about a kilometre, at one point running to prevent losing her.
At 11.41pm, footage showed the victim walking through Hyde Park, still followed by Jones. She crossed College Street and continued past St Mary’s Cathedral. At 11.44pm, Jones ran behind her and, outside of CCTV view, grabbed her jumper near her waist and pulled her into a hidden corner.
She demanded to be let go, but Jones strengthened their grip and stated: “I want to f— you. Just let me f— you.”
They pulled down their own pants with one hand as the screaming woman tried to break free. Jones tried to force a plastic object in her mouth to silence her, but she fought back. When she broke free, she fled to the echo of the words, “all right, then go”.
The woman ran towards bystanders who had seen Jones holding her and heard her screams. They flagged down a police car and a search for Jones ensued. Police eventually found and arrested Jones, whose DNA matched the woman’s fingernail sample.
‘Fundamentally changed my sense of safety’
In a victim impact statement partially read out in court, the woman shared the effect of the “unprecedented, unexpected, and aggressive act”.
“The experience permanently made me more aware of a risk in public spaces and more cautious in situations where I previously felt at ease,” she said.
“I had always walked freely without fear or intimidation, and this experience fundamentally changed my sense of safety. I had become more prepared, but also more vigilant, knowing that one’s life can be suddenly disrupted by extreme violence, even when simply trying to get home.”
Jones had history of breaching court orders
The judge described Jones’ actions, while spontaneous and opportunistic, as appalling, “intentional and, frankly, very frightening”.
“It occurred late at night when the victim was alone and vulnerable and entitled to feel safe as she walked home,” he said.
Anderson said Jones abused their freedom by committing these crimes in breach of a community corrections order (CCO) for failing their child sex offending reporting obligations – the latest of several reporting breaches on their criminal history.
That breach resulted in a three-month prison sentence.
The judge was cautious regarding Jones’ rehabilitation prospects, noting their limited remorse shown through “untested hearsay claims” from third parties.
Since being medicated for schizophrenia, Jones told a psychiatrist they felt “confused and bewildered” when looking back at the offending, and said they were “very sorry for what had happened”.
During sentencing, Anderson considered Jones’ diagnoses of schizophrenia, gender dysphoria, historic substance abuse and depression and anxiety.
Jones was homeless at the time of their offending, the court heard, having moved from Melbourne to Sydney with no money for rent.
Following their arrest, they pleaded guilty to attempted sexual intercourse without consent and stalking.
They had spent a portion of their nearly two years in custody in isolation and protection due to threats from fellow inmates, meaning their sentence would “weigh more heavily” than it would on other offenders, the judge said.
“It is certainly a difficult sentencing exercise given the appalling nature of the conduct itself. But the subjective case of the offender is powerful,” Anderson said.
With shaking arms and an open mouth, Jones otherwise sat emotionless as they were sentenced to three years and four months’ prison with a two-year non-parole period. With time already spent in custody, they will be eligible for parole on November 21.
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