A man who sparked a manhunt across Sydney’s east has been charged over a number of alleged sexual offences.
Police have said officers first tried to speak to a 48-year-old man at a property on Roscoe Street in Bondi as part of an investigation into an alleged sexual assault on the Central Coast earlier this month.
He allegedly ran from police when they approached him, sparking an hour-long manhunt.
He was arrested on a rooftop on Curlewis Street at 4.45pm after police went door-to-door to find him.
The 48-year-old was taken to Waverly Police Station where he was charged with 20 offences including aggravated sexual assault and sexually touching another person without consent.
Dozens of locals watched the incident unfold, with some of their homes used as an alleged hiding place for the man.
“He was sitting down inside my front door holding my son’s boogie board and towel over him,” a resident told 9News.
“I screamed at the cops that he was there and ran down the side of the fence.”
Another Bondi resident watched the end of the manhunt unfold from his balcony, where he saw the man jump up onto the roof and alerted police.
“[I saw] a bloke in footy shorts running down the road with some cops chasing after him, then he hopped the side fence. [The cops] started running through in between our houses,” he told 9News.
“I looked down and he was sitting on the roof. (The police) were screaming, ‘Where is he?’ and I said, ‘He’s literally sitting right there on the roof’.”
The homeowner was unaware that the man had taken refuge on his roof.
“I didn’t realise he was on my roof, I didn’t hear him,” the homeowner told 9News.
The man was refused bail and will appear at Waverley Local Court today.
