Guitarist with Melbourne band Alpine charged with sex assault of teen
The guitarist of Melbourne indie pop band Alpine allegedly fled to Brisbane "to avoid apprehension" earlier this year after he was linked to the alleged sexual assault of a teenager.
Christian O'Brien was charged with sexual assault earlier this year after a public appeal for information in January about an incident which allegedly occurred on Little Bourke Street in Melbourne's CBD.
Court documents released during a Melbourne Magistrates Court hearing on Monday reveal Mr O'Brien allegedly "intentionally sexually touched the complainant, a child under the age of 16, in circumstances where the touching was contrary to community standards of acceptable conduct".
The incident allegedly occurred on August 2 last year.
In early January, police appealed for information, releasing a picture of a man they wanted to speak to.
Shortly after that they said they had received information from the public and were following a number of lines of inquiry.
Court documents released this week also show that the police informant requested a warrant be issued for Mr O'Brien's arrest in early January.
"The accused has been identified as the offending male as a result of a media release being circulated," the document reads.
"Upon the media release being circulated, the accused has subsequently fled Melbourne to Brisbane in a bid to avoid apprehension. The accused is failing to engage with investigators and investigators believe he is likely to flee the country."
Mr O'Brien was charged soon after and his case returned to court on Monday. His next appearance is set down for a contest mention on February 18.
Mr O'Brien is the guitarist and songwriter of the ARIA-nominated alternative-pop band Alpine, which released its debut album A is for Alpine in 2012 and second album Yuck in 2015. The band released a new single in May last year.
They were nominated for breakthrough artist and best video at the 2012 ARIA awards.
Mr O'Brien was raised on Phillip Island and studied classical guitar at the Melba Conservatorium of Music.
Simone is a crime reporter for The Age. Most recently she covered breaking news for The Age, and before that for The Australian in Melbourne.