WARNING: This story details content of a sexual nature and may be upsetting.
A sportsman has been found not guilty of indecently assaulting three women and drugging one at a gym Christmas party.
The man, whose interim name suppression remains, spent six days on trial at the Wellington District Court where he faced six charges of indecent assault against the women, one of whom was a teenager at the time.
He was also on trial for a charge of aggravated wounding, “stupefying” with an unknown pill.
Today, following eight hours of deliberation, jurors believed the man’s defence that, while he may have acted inappropriately, he didn’t commit a crime.
Unanimous verdicts of not guilty were found for five of the seven charges. However, on two of the six indecent assault charges, only 11 out of 12 jurors could agree, reaching a majority verdict.
Those two charges related to allegations the man kissed two of the women.
During deliberations, which began yesterday, the jury asked to see CCTV footage again taken from the bar the group visited following the end-of-year celebration.
The allegations arose from a gym Christmas party in 2020, where the three complainants and the sportsman were all members. The name of the gym is also suppressed.
Throughout the trial, the jury heard two of the three complainants showed up to the party “hypo”, with some witnesses claiming they thought the trio were on drugs. This was denied by the women.
Two of the women alleged the man had grabbed their bottoms and breasts while walking from the gym to a bar in central Wellington.
The Crown alleged the sportsman forcefully gave one woman a pill after she denied it twice, which made her impaired.
During the trial, the man admitted he was on party drugs and said he gave the woman the pill with her consent.
A third complainant, who was a teenager at the time, alleged the man lifted her onto a raised platform, requested she dance for him, and slapped her bottom before kissing her.
But the man’s testimony was that he was so intoxicated he could not have lifted himself onto the raised platform let alone somebody else.
He denied all allegations and the jury accepted his defence that his actions did not amount to criminal wrongdoing.
“I am grateful to you on behalf of the community for you resolving this case with your verdicts,” Judge Peter Hobbs told the jury as he dismissed the group this afternoon.
“You go with my thanks and I wish you well for the rest of the week.”
Interim name suppression continues for the sportsman, with the Crown and defence team instructed to make submissions on whether it should become permanent.
The name of the gym and its owners will remain permanently suppressed.
Hazel Osborne is an Open Justice reporter for NZME and is based in Te Whanganui-a-Tara, Wellington. She joined the Open Justice team at the beginning of 2022, previously working in Whakatāne as a court and crime reporter in the Eastern Bay of Plenty.
SEXUAL HARM
Where to get help:If it’s an emergency and you feel that you or someone else is at risk, call 111.If you’ve ever experienced sexual assault or abuse and need to talk to someone, contact Safe to Talk confidentially, any time 24/7:• Call 0800 044 334• Text 4334• Email support@safetotalk.nz• For more info or to web chat visit safetotalk.nzAlternatively contact your local police station - click here for a list.If you have been sexually assaulted, remember it’s not your fault.
