A 65-year-old refugee released into the community after the has been charged with two counts of indecent assault.
South Australia police said they were called to a hotel in Adelaide’s north on Saturday after reports a woman had been indecently assaulted by a guest staying at the hotel.
The man was refused police bail and appeared at the Adelaide Magistrates Court on Monday.
Australian Border Force (ABF) on Sunday confirmed two detainees released as a result of the High Court’s decision have recently been charged with a criminal offence — one in South Australia and another in NSW.
“As both matters are now subject to court proceedings, no further detail can be provided,” an ABF statement said.
“Community safety is an absolute priority for the Australian Border Force and Department of Home Affairs.”
The arrests come as the government to place preventative detention orders on up to 148 individuals released from immigration detention last month based on an existing high-risk terrorism offenders scheme.
For preventative detention to take effect, the immigration minister would need to apply to a court to have the person re-detained.
The detainee would have had to be charged for a crime that came with at least a seven-year sentence.
The court would need to be convinced the person posed an unacceptable risk to the community and that other visa conditions would not be adequate enough.
Should the court impose a preventative detention order, it would apply for three years but would need to be reviewed annually.
The exact number of released detainees the preventative detention orders would apply to is not known.
The High Court of Australia ruled indefinite immigration detention was unlawful in early November. Source: AAP / Mick Tsikas
A supervision order may also be imposed on detainees if higher thresholds aren't able to be reached in court for a detention order.
The emergency legislation will be introduced to the parliament this Wednesday with Labor hoping for swift passage before parliament rises for the year on Thursday. Opposition leader Peter Dutton has signalled the Coalition will likely back the laws.
In the wake of the offences, Opposition immigration spokesman Dan Tehan called for Home Affairs Minister Clare O’Neil and Immigration Minister Andrew Giles to resign
"To begin the process of restoring trust with the Australian people, [they] should resign," Tehan said in a statement.
"If they don’t, the Prime Minister must sack them. This is a test for Anthony Albanese."
A government spokesperson said they were unable to comment on individual cases "due to privacy obligations", and called on the Opposition to support the emergency legislation.
"Peter Dutton and the Opposition say they back a preventive detention model based on the HRTO (high-risk terrorism offenders scheme) — now they have the chance to prove it," the spokesperson said.
"They only have one chance to back up their talk by working constructively with the government to pass this legislation this week.
SBS News has contacted South Australian Premier Peter Malinauskas office for comment.
- With additional reporting by the Australian Associated Press.
