Schoolgirl confronted North Shore Rapist after alleged attack in chemist​on February 24, 2025 at 4:50 am

The CCTV is expected to form a central part of the case against Kay, who did not appear on screen or in Downing Centre Local when his case was heard on Monday.

A magistrate adjourned Kay’s matter until March 13 and ordered him to enter a plea when it returned.

Neighbours inside Kay’s unit block in Blacktown told the Herald they were horrified to hear the quiet but increasingly strange resident was the notorious rapist.

Clara and JB, who did not reveal their surname for privacy reasons, live directly across the hallway from Kay’s Blacktown unit.

The couple have lived there for three years and remember when he moved in.

“He brought over some milk for us, and as it’s in our culture to give back. I cooked him masala and he was very thankful,” Clara said.

“From then on, he would hang cookies on our door and bring all our parcels up. He was very friendly.”

But Clara said now she knows Kay’s criminal history, one incident seemed inappropriate in hindsight.

“One time we were in the lifts alone and he commented on my appearance – he asked if I had lost weight,” she said.

“At the time, I didn’t think much of it, but it makes me feel uncomfortable now.”

JB said he was “speechless” after discovering Kay was a serial rapist.

“How can people like this be allowed in the community?” JB asked.

Another neighbour, Michael, who did not share his last name for privacy reasons, recalled Kay collecting plastic bottles or chatting enthusiastically about cricket.

“He was very happy, very chatty, always approaching me and other people around to have a chat.”

Several other residents who did not want their names and homes associated with Kay were appalled they were not alerted to his disturbing criminal history.

“Look how many people live here – there are so many kids,” one woman said.

“How can we have anyone over anymore if he comes back here? Would you go to dinner at your friend’s place if they lived next to a rapist?”

Survivors of Kay’s attacks in the 1990s have repeatedly warned the North Shore Rapist would never be rehabilitated.

Kay was on his third extended supervision order (ESO) at the time of Friday’s alleged attack, and is required to wear an ankle monitor and submit a schedule of his planned movements to supervisors. An ESO is the strictest court order reserved for releasing the most dangerous offenders into the community.

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Kay twice breached his first ESO, in 2018, including when he kissed another 16-year-old girl who was working in a grocery store.

He breached his second ESO in 2022 by stalking a woman around Sydney’s CBD for hours before following her into her apartment complex and sexually touching her without consent.

NSW Police Commissioner Karen Webb said Kay remained a “concern” for her officers.

“This matter was reported to us, and he was arrested and in custody and before the courts in six hours,” she said.

“We know a lot about his history, and he’s a concern for us, but he’s now before the courts today, so I’ll leave it to the courts.”

Pressed on what he had to say to Kay’s victims, Premier Chris Minns said he was “obviously devastated for anybody who’s a victim of crime in NSW, particularly for such serious offences”.

“When it comes to ESOs, parole and bail, the government has made changes to ensure that the public is safe,” he said.

“We can’t lay down a system that’s going to cover every offence all of the time, but we can make changes to ensure that we mitigate the risk for the public.”

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