A transgender sex offender who was days from a parole hearing that could have led to their release has been found dead in a prison cell.
Benjamin Charles Jones, 47, had recently been sentenced for following a young female tourist through Sydney’s CBD and attempting to rape her in October 2024.
Jones was sentenced to three years and four months in prison and ordered to serve at least two years.
After receiving a 25 per cent discount for an early guilty plea, along with credit for time already served, Jones became eligible for parole on November 21. The hearing had been scheduled for November 12.
However, Jones was found dead at Cooma Correctional Centre on October 30. The NSW State Parole Authority was notified a week later.
A Corrective Services NSW spokeswoman said no one else was involved in the death.
‘On Friday 30 October 2026, a 49-year-old died at Cooma Correctional Centre,’ the spokeswoman said.
‘Corrective Services NSW (CSNSW) and NSW Police are investigating.’
A transgender sex offender who was days from a parole hearing has been found dead in a prison cell
Jones, who used she/they pronouns, had recently been sentenced over the attack and attempted rape of a female tourist in October 2024. Jones is pictured on CCTV shortly before the incident
‘Any death in custody is immediately reported to the NSW Coroner and subject to a compulsory public inquiry.’
Jones, who identified as transgender and used she/they pronouns, had previously been jailed for attempting to rape a woman who was walking home from dinner in Melbourne in 2021.
Jones also served seven years in Germany for sexually assaulting a six-year-old girl. After being deported to Australia in 2018, Jones was placed on a child sex offenders register, news.com.au reported.
CCTV footage from the October 2024 incident showed Jones following the 31-year-old tourist through Sydney’s CBD after she left a nightclub.
The court heard Jones followed the woman through Hyde Park before dragging her into a secluded area near St Mary’s Cathedral and attempting to rape her.
Jones allegedly forced a plastic object into the woman’s mouth to silence her screams and tried to remove both their clothing.
‘I want to f*** you, just let me f*** you,’ Jones told her.
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The woman escaped during the struggle and sought assistance from people passing by.
CCTV footage showed Jones following the 31-year-old tourist through Sydney’s CBD after she left a nightclub
Jones was later arrested after DNA evidence was found beneath the woman’s fingernails and on her clothing.
Jones pleaded guilty to one count of sexual assault without consent and one count of stalking.
In a victim impact statement, the woman said the attack had destroyed her sense of safety. Before the assault, she said she had felt free to walk without fear or intimidation.
‘I chose not to tell my close family members, including my parents and grandparents, because I did not want to place a burden on them that they could not cope with,’ she told the court.
The court also heard Jones had been released into the community just weeks before the Hyde Park attack after breaching reporting requirements, despite police warning that Jones posed a ‘significant risk’ to the public.
According to court documents, Jones delayed telling police about the move from Victoria to NSW.
Jones also gave police false information about their new living arrangements.
‘Since arrival in NSW, the accused has been difficult to locate and reported not to have a mobile phone,’ court documents stated.
Jones had been eligible for parole from November 21
Jones received a 12-month community corrections order for breaching the reporting conditions.
During the latest sentencing hearing, NSW District Court Judge Troy Anderson considered Jones’ mental health issues, drug use and reported threats from other inmates.
Jones had spent almost two years in protective isolation since their arrest because of threats from other prisoners. The judge said that circumstance meant any period of imprisonment would ‘weigh more heavily’ on Jones.
‘It is certainly a difficult sentencing exercise given the appalling nature of the conduct itself. But the subjective case of the offender is powerful,’ Judge Anderson said when making Jones eligible for parole from November 21.
A parole hearing had been scheduled for the following Thursday to determine whether Jones would be released.