Child rapist who tried to murder five-year-old girl granted release

Perth Now30-05-2025

A convicted child rapist who tried to murder a five-year-old girl has been granted release after spending 23 years behind bars.
Stephen Neil White, 59, was jailed in 2001 after he dragged the young girl into bushland in the Western Australian town of Kununurra, struck her on the head with a rock, tied a rope around her neck until she lost consciousness, and raped her.
At the time, the then 35-year-old was in a relationship with a woman who had brought along her two young cousins, whom she was caring for, on a camping trip with him on June 18, 2001.
White later took the girl to hospital with life-threatening injuries, but fled the scene once she began receiving treatment, prompting a large-scale manhunt.
He was eventually arrested and charged with attempted murder and rape, receiving a 17-year prison sentence.
He was also handed an additional 16-month term for knocking the woman unconscious in the tent before dragging away the child.
In 2013, a continuing detention order was imposed to keep him behind bars beyond his original sentence.
Ultimately, White spent almost 22 years in prison before being deemed suitable for release in November 2023.
He was placed on a three-year community supervision order and allocated more than $800,000 worth of NDIS support for one year.
He reportedly told his lawyer he wanted to go back to prison. A WA Supreme Court justice ordered White's release under a strict supervision order. Credit: Richard Wainwright / AAP Image
White has spent the majority of his adult life behind bars.
In 1984, when he was in his twenties, he was sentenced to eight years in prison for sexually assaulting a 73-year-old woman in her South Australian home.
That offence came a year after he indecently assaulted a girl under the age of 16.
While on bail, he also attempted to sexually assault another woman, reportedly using a knife to subdue her.
On Monday, the Supreme Court ordered White's release once again, and this time under 67 strict conditions.
Under the supervision order, White will be monitored around the clock and receive intensive support through an NDIS plan valued at more than $800,000 a year, due to his intellectual disabilities.
He must report regularly to police, abide by a curfew, refrain from consuming alcohol, and have no contact with children.
He is also required to live at a designated address, remain within Western Australia, engage in rehabilitation programs, and avoid public events where children may be present.
The decision to release White was informed by a psychiatric report presented to the court.
White, who has an acquired brain injury and an IQ of 62, has been diagnosed with schizophrenia and antisocial personality disorder.
The psychiatrist concluded that White is highly institutionalised and lacks the capacity to form meaningful relationships.
However, the report said he had made progress in recent years while in custody and could be managed in the community under strict supervision.
White will remain under the supervision order until December 2026.

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Grandfather pens letter to PM after death in custody

The Advertiser

2 days ago

The Advertiser

Grandfather pens letter to PM after death in custody

The grandfather of a 24-year-old man who died in custody has drafted an open letter to the prime minister calling on Canberra to step in and address "madness" in the Northern Territory's justice system. The senior Warlpiri leader and kin of Kumanjayi White, who died after being forcibly restrained by two plain clothes officers inside a supermarket in Alice Springs in May, said justice in the Territory was "in crisis". "Your government in Canberra has total power over the NT," Ned Jampijinpa Hargraves, a Yuendumu man, wrote. "The prisons are so full they need private security guards; guards on buses and public housing officers are being given guns - this madness must stop." The letter addressed to Prime Minister Anthony Albanese landed ahead of protests in Sydney and Alice Springs on Saturday to demand justice for Mr White. The senior Indigenous leader renewed his call for an independent investigation into the death of his grandson. The family has also been calling for the release of CCTV footage and for the officers involved to be stood down while the investigation takes place. Federal minister for Indigenous Australians, Malarndirri McCarthy, backs an independent inquiry but despite broad support, the NT government has rejected the proposal, saying NT Police are best-placed to investigate the death. Police allege Mr White, who had a mental disability and was in care, was shoplifting and assaulted a security guard. In his letter, Mr Hargraves demanded immediate action from the Commonwealth, including withholding funding to the NT government until it agreed to an independent probe. "You used this power to take away all our rights, our jobs and our assets with the NT Intervention 18 years ago today," he said. "Now we demand action from Canberra to see that our rights are restored and we are protected from the racist Country Liberal Party government." Speaking ahead of a meeting of the Joint Council on Closing the Gap in Darwin on Friday, Senator McCarthy said deaths in custody had to end and the federal government was deeply concerned about the issue. The Yuendumu community also lost 19-year-old Kumanjayi Walker in 2019 when he was shot by then-NT police officer Zachary Rolfe during a botched arrest. Mr Rolfe was found not guilty of all charges over the death in 2022. Protesters in Sydney gathered to respond to a policing conference involving the former police officer but the first responders event has since been cancelled, according to the rally organisers. The grandfather of a 24-year-old man who died in custody has drafted an open letter to the prime minister calling on Canberra to step in and address "madness" in the Northern Territory's justice system. The senior Warlpiri leader and kin of Kumanjayi White, who died after being forcibly restrained by two plain clothes officers inside a supermarket in Alice Springs in May, said justice in the Territory was "in crisis". "Your government in Canberra has total power over the NT," Ned Jampijinpa Hargraves, a Yuendumu man, wrote. "The prisons are so full they need private security guards; guards on buses and public housing officers are being given guns - this madness must stop." The letter addressed to Prime Minister Anthony Albanese landed ahead of protests in Sydney and Alice Springs on Saturday to demand justice for Mr White. The senior Indigenous leader renewed his call for an independent investigation into the death of his grandson. The family has also been calling for the release of CCTV footage and for the officers involved to be stood down while the investigation takes place. Federal minister for Indigenous Australians, Malarndirri McCarthy, backs an independent inquiry but despite broad support, the NT government has rejected the proposal, saying NT Police are best-placed to investigate the death. Police allege Mr White, who had a mental disability and was in care, was shoplifting and assaulted a security guard. In his letter, Mr Hargraves demanded immediate action from the Commonwealth, including withholding funding to the NT government until it agreed to an independent probe. "You used this power to take away all our rights, our jobs and our assets with the NT Intervention 18 years ago today," he said. "Now we demand action from Canberra to see that our rights are restored and we are protected from the racist Country Liberal Party government." Speaking ahead of a meeting of the Joint Council on Closing the Gap in Darwin on Friday, Senator McCarthy said deaths in custody had to end and the federal government was deeply concerned about the issue. The Yuendumu community also lost 19-year-old Kumanjayi Walker in 2019 when he was shot by then-NT police officer Zachary Rolfe during a botched arrest. Mr Rolfe was found not guilty of all charges over the death in 2022. Protesters in Sydney gathered to respond to a policing conference involving the former police officer but the first responders event has since been cancelled, according to the rally organisers. The grandfather of a 24-year-old man who died in custody has drafted an open letter to the prime minister calling on Canberra to step in and address "madness" in the Northern Territory's justice system. The senior Warlpiri leader and kin of Kumanjayi White, who died after being forcibly restrained by two plain clothes officers inside a supermarket in Alice Springs in May, said justice in the Territory was "in crisis". "Your government in Canberra has total power over the NT," Ned Jampijinpa Hargraves, a Yuendumu man, wrote. "The prisons are so full they need private security guards; guards on buses and public housing officers are being given guns - this madness must stop." The letter addressed to Prime Minister Anthony Albanese landed ahead of protests in Sydney and Alice Springs on Saturday to demand justice for Mr White. The senior Indigenous leader renewed his call for an independent investigation into the death of his grandson. The family has also been calling for the release of CCTV footage and for the officers involved to be stood down while the investigation takes place. Federal minister for Indigenous Australians, Malarndirri McCarthy, backs an independent inquiry but despite broad support, the NT government has rejected the proposal, saying NT Police are best-placed to investigate the death. Police allege Mr White, who had a mental disability and was in care, was shoplifting and assaulted a security guard. In his letter, Mr Hargraves demanded immediate action from the Commonwealth, including withholding funding to the NT government until it agreed to an independent probe. "You used this power to take away all our rights, our jobs and our assets with the NT Intervention 18 years ago today," he said. "Now we demand action from Canberra to see that our rights are restored and we are protected from the racist Country Liberal Party government." Speaking ahead of a meeting of the Joint Council on Closing the Gap in Darwin on Friday, Senator McCarthy said deaths in custody had to end and the federal government was deeply concerned about the issue. The Yuendumu community also lost 19-year-old Kumanjayi Walker in 2019 when he was shot by then-NT police officer Zachary Rolfe during a botched arrest. Mr Rolfe was found not guilty of all charges over the death in 2022. Protesters in Sydney gathered to respond to a policing conference involving the former police officer but the first responders event has since been cancelled, according to the rally organisers. The grandfather of a 24-year-old man who died in custody has drafted an open letter to the prime minister calling on Canberra to step in and address "madness" in the Northern Territory's justice system. The senior Warlpiri leader and kin of Kumanjayi White, who died after being forcibly restrained by two plain clothes officers inside a supermarket in Alice Springs in May, said justice in the Territory was "in crisis". "Your government in Canberra has total power over the NT," Ned Jampijinpa Hargraves, a Yuendumu man, wrote. "The prisons are so full they need private security guards; guards on buses and public housing officers are being given guns - this madness must stop." The letter addressed to Prime Minister Anthony Albanese landed ahead of protests in Sydney and Alice Springs on Saturday to demand justice for Mr White. The senior Indigenous leader renewed his call for an independent investigation into the death of his grandson. The family has also been calling for the release of CCTV footage and for the officers involved to be stood down while the investigation takes place. Federal minister for Indigenous Australians, Malarndirri McCarthy, backs an independent inquiry but despite broad support, the NT government has rejected the proposal, saying NT Police are best-placed to investigate the death. Police allege Mr White, who had a mental disability and was in care, was shoplifting and assaulted a security guard. In his letter, Mr Hargraves demanded immediate action from the Commonwealth, including withholding funding to the NT government until it agreed to an independent probe. "You used this power to take away all our rights, our jobs and our assets with the NT Intervention 18 years ago today," he said. "Now we demand action from Canberra to see that our rights are restored and we are protected from the racist Country Liberal Party government." Speaking ahead of a meeting of the Joint Council on Closing the Gap in Darwin on Friday, Senator McCarthy said deaths in custody had to end and the federal government was deeply concerned about the issue. The Yuendumu community also lost 19-year-old Kumanjayi Walker in 2019 when he was shot by then-NT police officer Zachary Rolfe during a botched arrest. Mr Rolfe was found not guilty of all charges over the death in 2022. Protesters in Sydney gathered to respond to a policing conference involving the former police officer but the first responders event has since been cancelled, according to the rally organisers.