Adelaide businessman Solomon Farah closing business, charged with indecently assaulting multiple women

The 67-year-old says he’s been forced to close his skin care business due to “extremely damaging” media coverage of his legal problems.

Solomon Farah at Cotto Espresso at King William Road, Hyde Park in 2014. Photo: Sam Wundke

A businessman who allegedly indecently assaulted female job seekers is closing his skincare business after his reputation was “extremely damaged” by media coverage.

Solomon Farah, 67, applied in the Adelaide Magistrates Court on Wednesday to have his home detention conditions removed, arguing any alleged touching of the women was “plainly consensual”.

Police allege Mr Farah lured 12 women into his Currie St business, Skin Fit Co, where he indecently assaulted them by massaging lotion on various parts of their bodies.

The court previously heard the former chief financial officer was originally arrested on February 7 following the assault of one woman during a trial shift.

“He rubbed lotion on her and felt up her breasts under her shirt and made comments about her breasts being bouncy with lotion,” the prosecutor said.

Solomon Farah is charged with multiple counts of indecent assault. Picture: Facebook

A post made to Solomon Farah’s Facebook account.

Mr Farah is charged with multiple counts of indecent assault, for the alleged offences dated between January 5, 2023 and February 2, 2024.

He is yet to enter any pleas.

Andrew Ey, for Mr Farah, asked the court for his client to be allowed to attend his former business address with removalists to “clean the premises out”.

The court Mr Farah no longer wished to pursue the business any longer due to the significant media coverage his case had received.

Mr Ey also asked for Mr Farah’s home detention conditions to be removed, arguing that some of the alleged victims’ statements showed the contact was consensual.

“A perusal of those statements really reveals that there’s no case to answer as it relates to a number of the charges,” he said.
Mr Ey said it was evident one of the alleged victims agreed to the contact after saying in her statement: “Although Solomon asked me if he could to touch me, I felt compelled to agree out of politeness and my willingness to get the job”.

Mr Ey said another of the alleged victims was also consenting, noting she said in her statement that when Mr Farah asked if he could demonstrate his products on her she agreed and sat on a massage table.

Solomon Farah leaves the Adelaide Magistrates Court where he is facing charges of indecent assault. Picture: NewsWire/Brenton Edwards

The court heard another alleged victim said when Mr Farah asked if he could continue (the alleged indecent assault) she was “so shocked” she said yes.

Mr Ey said the charges were “strongly contested” and the ample media attention had been “extremely damaging” to Mr Farah’s reputation.

Mr Farah was a partner and chief executive at CIBO Espresso for six years before leaving the company around 2011 and pursuing other career paths including joining the team at Cotto Espresso and starting his marketing company Aspire Co.

He has an accountancy background and was also the chief financial officer at Jurlique for five years.

A prosecutor told the court they were “strongly opposed” to the application and there was evidence that the alleged indecent assaults were “certainly not consensual”.

Magistrate Kym Millard granted the variation for Mr Farah to attend his business premises but adjourned the home detention removal application until next week.

Mr Ey then asked for a suppression order of the submissions of the hearing “in the interest of justice” as the media coverage could prejudice the defence case.

Mr Millard declined to suppress the submissions, saying it would be a matter for trial and noting Mr Farrah’s alleged assaults could be deemed “as an abuse of authority”.