A man accused of sexually assaulting a child in a south Sydney dance studio was making dozens of offensive phone calls in the weeks and months leading up to the attack, court documents reveal.
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Anthony Peter Sampieri's spree continued until just hours before he allegedly held a seven-year-old girl captive in a dance studio bathroom in November.
The revelations came after the 55-year-old was charged with 87 new counts of using a carriage service to menace, harass or offend.
Sampieri's lawyer made no application for his release when the matter was mentioned at Sutherland Local Court on Tuesday. Sampieri did not appear.
Court documents show the first recorded call was made from a mobile phone on August 18, 2018.
He made as many as 15 calls on a single day from the same phone. Some were as early as 8:24am and as late as 10.30pm.
In November, he allegedly made 13 calls. Three of those were on the afternoon of November 15 - just four hours before he is accused of going into the dance studio.
Court documents from November revealed Sampieri allegedly choked the girl in order to prevent her resisting the sexual assault and filmed indecent acts before other adults burst in to rescue her after 15 minutes.
Sampieri is then accused of stabbing Nicola Gilio in the abdomen when he came to the girl's aid before others subdued him and police were called.
He was charged on Monday after more alleged victims came forward.
Police refused him bail because he is still facing court over the attack on the girl, they believe their case is "strong" and community protection is "paramount", according to court documents.
They also noted his "extensive criminal history related to sexual assault" and said victims fear he will reoffend.
Two weeks after his arrest in November, a leading senior constable was suspended with pay following an internal investigation into the handling of a complaint prior to the alleged attack.
Sampieri's lawyer on Tuesday asked for the offensive phone call charges to be brought in line with the assault case at the same court on January 23.
She said the two sets of charges were "not strictly related" but the court granted her request.
Australian Associated Press
