Taxi driver Roman Peter Galaska found not guilty of sexual assault: ‘This complaint has destroyed a family’

Roman Peter Galaska said he is considering legal action against the police for bringing the sexual assault charges against him.

“I haven’t been able to sleep” he said “Our family has been destroyed and for what, what did I do?”

A Cairns taxi driver found not guilty of sexual assault has said the accusations made against him by a female passenger have destroyed his family and he is considering suing the police who brought the charges against him.

Roman Peter Galaska, 71, had pleaded not guilty to the charges arising from an alleged incident at Mooroobool on April 4, 2022.

He was charged with two counts of sexual assault – the first based on the allegation that he kissed a female passenger after he opened the rear door of the cab and second was that he touched her right breast after hugging her.

During the Cairns District Court trial which began on Tuesday, the jury was played CCTV video of the trip, when Mr Galaska picked up the woman from Cairns Hospital in the early hours of the morning and initially chatted with her about long wait times to be seen at the hospital.

“At least they saw you, so hopefully things will get better,” Mr Galaska said.

The woman was picked up from Cairns Hospital. Picture: Brendan Radke

He asked the woman if she was married and she said “no, I am single, actually”

“We could drive for a couple of hours, go parking or something … jump in the back and keep ourselves occupied for an hour or so,” he suggested.

“Everyone’s asleep, you don’t have to really wake them up, do you,” he said, and the woman explained that the way the door locked meant she had to get one of her siblings to open it.

Mr Galaska then rejected another fare and offered “so I can sit and chat with you a while”.

The woman responded it was okay as her brother was up and waiting for her, which prosecutor Seamus McManus said was a lie because she felt increasingly uncomfortable.

He then got out and opened the rear door for her, the pair are seen outside the taxi for several seconds, and Mr Galaska gets back in and sighs.

Mr McManus said the woman went to her room and cried.

On Thursday afternoon, a District Court jury found Mr Galaska not guilty of the sexual assault charge relating to the allegation he touched her breast and where unable to reach a unanimous verdict on the charge related to the allegation he kissed her.

Speaking outside of court Mr Galaska told Newscorp he had not done anything wrong.

“I made a frivolous remark during the trip that’s all,” he said.

Mr Galaska was found not guilty on one charge and the jury was unable to come to a verdict on another. Picture: Brendan Radke.

“The video showed during the whole trip she is laughing and joking in the cab – she said she can’t find her key – she couldn’t get in the cab and I said to her as a joke I might have to just keep driving around the block until you find it and then I said no I can’t really do that it’s only a $20 cab, it will end up being $120 and I couldn’t do it”.

“It was at 330am, I had worked 15 hours that day, I was just making a few silly remarks."

Mr Galaska said that he helped her get out of his taxi because she had a couple of shopping bags and her arm in plaster.

“I gave her a short hug and said ‘take care of yourself’… I never touched her breast.”

Mr Galaska said lost his licence to drive taxis and buses as a result, and that the trial had cost him $200,000.

“I haven’t been able to sleep” he said.

“Our family has been destroyed and for what, what did I do?

“I could go down to the police station right now and say you touched my penis, how would you prove you didn’t do that.”

Mr Galaska said he believed the police should never have charged him and was considering taking civil action against them.

Originally published as Taxi driver Roman Peter Galaska found not guilty of sexual assault: ‘This complaint has destroyed a family’