David Joseph Perrett's historical child sex abuse charges adjourned in Armidale Local Court | Strike Force Bennett

David Joseph Perrett is being held in custody, after he had his bail revoked in August, charged with close to 100 historical sex abuse offences.

The alleged offences occurred between the 1960s and 1990s in the Armidale, Lower Creek, Moree, Walgett and Guyra areas, where Perrett served as a Catholic priest.

He is yet to enter pleas, and on Wednesday, magistrate Michael Holmes granted a further adjournment in Armidale Local Court.

Detectives have been ordered to serve the remaining items of the brief by mid-December, with the case scheduled to return to court in mid-January.

A release application had been foreshadowed with the court but it was withdrawn. Mr Holmes formally refused bail until the case returns to court next year.

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The charges include buggery, carnal knowledge of a child under 10, aggravated sexual assault, aggravated indecent assault and assault occasioning actual bodily harm and Perrett faces life behind bars if found guilty of the offences.

In August, The Leader revealed the new charges against the retired priest following investigations by Strike Force Bennett.

The investigation was launched by Armidale detectives in 2015 after a referral from the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Assault, which culminated in Perrett’s extradition from Wallangara in Queensland in May 2017.

Since the extradition was made public, dozens more alleged victims have come forward to report alleged abuse by Perrett – who was a former catholic priest in the Armidale diocese.