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Three Canberra men are on trial in the ACT Supreme Court this week accused of trying to launch an attack on a sex offender. At the opening of the trial on Tuesday, the court heard one of the men had a video on his phone of the sex offender molesting an underage girl. The man allegedly told police he went to the house to bang on the door, show the offender the video and educate him. One man said they only wanted to turn him in to authorities, the court heard. But prosecutors contend the men committed a crime and went there armed with a knife and the intent to break in and cause the man harm. They warned the jury to put aside any prejudice about the sex offender's behaviour because "we do not tolerate people taking the law into their own hands". The 62-year-old sex offender has admitted to four counts of rape and one act of indecency against four girls aged between 14 and 15. He is in custody in the Alexander Maconochie Centre and will be sentenced next year. Prosecutors allege that about 7am on February 20, Paul Arthur Palmer, 39, Daniel James Nicholas, 32, and Joshua Darcy Watson, 33, went to the man's townhouse and tried to force entry. All three have pleaded not guilty to one count of attempted aggravated burglary. The sex offender was the first called to give evidence, led to the witness box in prison blues before a courtroom packed with barristers and corrections officers. The man, who cried as he took his oath, told the court he woke to banging on the door about 2am. He went downstairs and said he saw men leaving towards a car. At 7am he was woken again. He said he went down and saw a man with a knife and a piece of wire at the lock and using his shoulder to force open the door. He said he heard more noises and saw another two men at the back door before hiding upstairs and calling police. But defence barristers challenged the man on the events that morning, and he denied their suggestions he had never seen a man with a knife or wire. He agreed he did not tell the triple-o operator about the knife or wire. One of the officers at the scene told the jury that after Mr Palmer was arrested that morning, he asked her to go and get his iPhone because "there's a story". Police also found a knife and a screwdriver on the ground near the house, the court heard. The court heard the sex offender was arrested the day after the early morning incident. In her opening address to the jury, prosecutor Rebecca Christensen said this was one of the more difficult trials a jury would have to decide. It went to the "heart of our society." She said no matter how badly somebody behaved, a civilised society expected that it was the police who investigated and responded to crime. The prosecutor said the sex offender was no less entitled to the protection of the criminal justice system than anyone else. It was the same system in which he was now behind bars, she said. Mr Watson's defence barrister said in a brief opening address that while prosecutors had talked about the rule of law and civil society, that "is not what this case is about". Beth Morrisroe said the case boiled down to two things: was there an attempt, and an intention, to enter the house that morning. She urged the jury to ask themselves when hearing the evidence if there was an explanation consistent with innocence. The trial continues before Justice Michael Elkaim.

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