'Deviant sexual interests': Man jailed after masturbating in Oberon public library

Keith Speirs, 63, of Albion Street, Oberon, was before Oberon Local Court on February 6, 2024 where he was sentenced for:

Speirs - who pleaded guilty to the charges - was also resentenced for breaching community correction orders for three counts of sexually touching a person without consent.

Police documents before the court said Speirs was at Oberon Library at around 12.30pm on June 28, 2022 when a staff member began to hear "unusual noises" from where he was sitting.

The victim then noticed Speirs - who was in a "very" public area of the library - was "jerking" his right arm and shoulder with his legs extended in front of him.

The victim grabbed a set of books, went to a vantage point to see what Speirs was doing and saw his penis was out.

By this time, according to the police documents, Speirs had both hands on the desk, and the victim could see fluid on the carpet beneath him.

The victim went to ask Speirs what he was doing, but he immediately took out his hearing-aids so he couldn't hear what the victim was saying.

"Keith, why is your penis out? What are you doing? Are you masturbating?" the victim said, according to the police documents.

"Keith, this is not okay, don't come back."

After a number of requests to leave, Speirs left the library, which had one other person inside.

The victim cleaned up the mess left behind before contacting her supervisor, who called police.

The police documents said the victim was physically ill as a result.

While speaking with officers, police said Speirs told them he "didn't know that it went on the floor or on the seat".

On a separate occasion, Speirs was having a meeting at a recruitment agency in Oberon at about 3.10pm on March 14, 2023 when the woman noticed he was staring into her eyes and grunting.

The woman said she heard banging noises from underneath the table, before Speirs slouched over and switched his hands from beneath.

The victim sent a co-worker a message, concerned Speirs was touching himself.

The court heard that as the co-worker walked past the victim's office, she saw Speirs masturbating under the desk.

In an attempt to get Speirs to leave, the victim said her laptop had stopped working, but Speirs continued to masturbate, according to police documents.

The co-worker said they were closing for the day but Speirs didn't move until he was told again to leave.

He then stood from the desk, put his penis back into his pants and left.

The victim, who was crying and said she felt violated, went to Bathurst Police Station the following day to make a report.

Speirs was spoken to by police on April 15 at Oberon.

On another occasion, Speirs was at the Shell Service Station on Durham Street in Bathurst just before 12pm on August 8, 2023 when he grabbed a woman's buttocks.

The woman reported the sexual touching to police, while a witness downloaded a copy of CCTV and gave it to the officers.

Police documents tendered to the court said the video footage shows Speirs taking deliberate steps towards the victim as he held his hand out to grope her.

Police went to Speirs' home on August 10 and arrested him.

While in custody at Bathurst Police Station, Speirs said he "accidentally bumped" into the victim.

Magistrate Elizabeth Ellis mentioned Speirs' "deviant sexual interests" and "high level of impulsivity" as she read the charges against him aloud while he sat in the gallery.

Solicitor Angus Edwards submitted that while his client had crossed the section five threshold - meaning jail was to be considered - it would be better for his client to stay in the community and undertake rehabilitation.

"It's conceded these are serious matters and they are similar to those that occurred in 2020 ... but since the incidents, no other further offences have taken place," Mr Edwards said.

"My client's lack of insight in the Sentence Assessment Report appears to be related to his intellectual disability."

Police prosecutor Sergeant Cameron Ferrier said there was a "real need for general deterrence" given Speirs had breached orders for charges of the same nature.

"He doesn't seem to understand people are not open to his sexual proclivities," Ms Ellis said.

"He has been warned by police, and he has been warned by the court. There's a very real concern for the protection of the community."

Speirs was sentenced to 18 months behind bars, with a non-parole period of 12 months.

He will be eligible for release on February 5, 2025.