A FORMER Moyne Shire employee charged with three counts of kidnapping has failed in another bid to be granted bail.
Russell Ian Payne, 41, previously of Koroit, was remanded in mid-March and has spent the past 93 days in custody.
He applied for bail in the Warrnambool Magistrates Court yesterday, submitting through defence counsel Jonathan Makary that there were new facts and circumstances which would enable bail to be granted.
The court was previously told Mr Payne had been arrested after a 21-year-old Warrnambool woman made allegations she had been kidnapped.
The woman and her 16-year-old brother accepted a ride with Mr Payne from Port Fairy to Warrnambool in the early hours of Sunday, March 11.
Detective Senior Constable Colin Ryan, of Warrnambool police criminal investigation unit, told the court Mr Payne had told the pair he was a council worker doing security at the Port Fairy Folk Festival and making sure young people were getting home safely.
"The driver has then headed towards Warrnambool and got to the Rowans Lane Winery (at Farnham Road) when he stopped on the highway," Detective Senior Constable Ryan said.
"The driver is alleged to have asked the boy to get three Jim Beam bourbon cans out of the boot. When the boy got out, the driver is alleged to have planted his foot on the accelerator and completed a U-turn before heading back towards Port Fairy, saying 'see you later buddy'. "He is alleged to have said to the woman, 'I'm taking you'."
Detective Senior Constable Ryan said the woman decided to jump from the moving vehicle because she was terrified about what was going to happen, fearing "she would be raped or worse".
"She jumped out of the car while it's travelling at an estimated 40km/h to 50 km/h. She tumbled out the driver's side of the vehicle right onto the middle of the road. She suffered numerous injuries and was picked up by her brother and they ran to the south side of the highway."
Detective Senior Constable Ryan said yesterday he still held major concerns about Mr Payne due to the bizarre nature of the offending.
Mr Makary said his client had spent 93 days in custody and a psychiatric report indicated alcohol was a key factor in what happened. His client also suffered depression.
He said Mr Payne would abide by strict bail conditions including not drinking alcohol, a nightly curfew and to report to Warrnambool police as required.
Magistrate Jonathan Klestadt said Mr Payne had prior convictions up and down the east coast of Australia, including an armed robbery in the ACT.
He said Mr Payne had little attachment to the Warrnambool area, had twice previously failed to appear on bail and had a history of breaching court-imposed intervention orders.
The magistrate said that if convicted Mr Payne faced serving a substantial period of imprisonment and the prosecution case appeared strong.