Northland business manager grilled over ‘crude’ comments and inappropriately touching women

The man has denied all charges of indecent assault as the case prepares to close. Photo / 123rf

A man accused of indecently assaulting multiple women has taken the stand where he has claimed to be an “unlucky“ victim of lies.

In the past week, five women have given evidence in the Whangārei District Court in relation to 12 alleged incidents of the defendant - who is in his 60s and cannot be named - touching them or making comments about their bodies such as “fat a**, fat guts, plastic t**s”.

Crown prosecutor Geraldine Kelly questioned the accused about making the comments to one woman as he allegedly grabbed her breasts.

“I have a saying...Fat a**, fat guts, plastic t**s because that’s what she’s got, she’s proud of them,” he said.

“Did you ever say that while grabbing her?” Kelly asked.

“No,” he responded.

The man went on to defend the comments, saying “It was around the time she was eating Mrs McGregor Pies.”

“You think it’s okay to comment on the way she looks?” Kelly questioned.

He said, at the time, the women were “being mean” to him, which Kelly shut down.

“You’re making this up as you go along,” Kelly said.

The accused said he was meant to kiss a woman on the cheek but she turned her head. Photo / 123RF

In regards to one alleged incident, a complainant had given evidence the man touched her behind. But the accused told the jury the woman had pushed him into a trench and he got angry, chased her and touched her leg as he fell over.

Another woman claimed the man touched her behind and, on the same day, grabbed her by the crotch in a car park.

When Kelly questioned him on the incident, he accepted he had touched her behind, but said it was an accident.

“So she’s telling the truth about that bit?” Kelly asked.

“Yes.”

“But not about the stuff that makes you look worse?” Kelly went on to ask.

“What’s that question got to do with it?” he said, to which he was reminded by Judge Gene Tomlinson, he was not the one to ask the questions.

The accused said the complainant gave him her phone number to meet up at a bar, a scenario that had not been put to her when she was giving evidence.

Kelly questioned him as to why the complainant would want to go to a bar with a man of his age.

“Are you trying to suggest she was hitting on you?” she asked.

“Yes, to get a job,” he said.

The man admitted he had been crude to many women but “that’s just me” and maintained he had not touched any of the complainants.

“You’ve heard all these women talking about the things you think are funny, are they all lying?” Kelly asked.

“They must be, I don’t know who the leader of the group is. First, there was a couple [of women] and all of a sudden there’s a group of them,” he said.

“Would you say you’re an unlucky man having all these women come in to lie?” said Kelly.

“I am unlucky.”

“The other alternative is, they are not lying and you did what they say you did,” Kelly closed with.

The defence will call one more witness before the closings are heard and the jury begins its deliberation.