Senior government adviser charged with rape after previous domestic-violence allegations in Australia
Daniel McCluskie, 44, faces a new rape charge months after a slate of domestic-violence offences were filed against him
A senior adviser to the Australian federal government has been charged with rape, the latest development in a string of alleged domestic-violence offences involving Daniel McCluskie, 44. McCluskie was arrested by detectives in Sydney's inner west at 7:40 p.m. Friday and taken to Burwood Police Station, where he was charged with one count of sexual intercourse without consent in relation to an alleged assault on a 27-year-old woman in Glebe in February 2021. He was refused bail to appear before Parramatta Local Court on Saturday. He works as a senior adviser for the Australian Digital Health Agency, a Commonwealth entity that oversees the national e-health system.
In July, McCluskie was charged with 15 domestic-violence-related offences spanning a three-year period. The allegations include eight counts of sexual intercourse without consent and three counts of choking without consent, as well as charges of kidnapping against a 35-year-old woman between 2021 and 2023. He is also accused of choking a 52-year-old woman he met on a dating app last March. Additional counts include two counts of stalking and intimidation, intentionally recording an intimate image without consent, and detaining a person with intent to obtain advantage.
In court last July, prosecutor Rob Kury said the case raised concerns about coercive-controlling behaviour within the relationship at issue. If granted bail, he warned, members of the community may be at risk from McCluskie.
McCluskie's barrister, Rebecca Mitchell, argued that the alleged offences against the first woman occurred in Melbourne and Surfers Paradise, outside New South Wales' jurisdiction. Mitchell also noted that police had provided little evidence of the alleged offences, with no medical evidence to support the sexual crimes and no digital files to corroborate the charge of recording an intimate image without consent.
Authorities have ordered McCluskie to forfeit his passport and banned him from leaving New South Wales or entering any international port of departure from Australia.
The Daily Mail reported the latest charges and court proceedings, and the outlet said it had contacted the Australian Digital Health Agency for comment.