Blake Snow pleads not guilty to four counts of rape, one of sexual assault

After almost a day of deliberating, the jury in the trial of a Sunshine Coast boilermaker accused of raping a woman at a small social gathering has failed to reach a verdict. DETAILS

Blake Thomas Snow leaving Maroochydore District Court on Friday after the jury for his trial was discharged. Picture: Sam Turner

The jury in the trial of a Coolum Beach man accused of raping a woman at a house party on the Sunshine Coast has been discharged after they failed to reach a verdict.

Blake Thomas Snow pleaded not guilty to four counts of rape and one of sexual assault on the first day of his trial in the Maroochydore District Court on Tuesday, with Friday marking its fourth day.

The boilermaker claims the sexual encounter was consensual at the small house party in 2022.

Day four – No verdict

Blake Thomas Snow left the court on bail.

The jury has revealed in a note to presiding Judge Nathan Jarro they were unable to reach a verdict late Friday morning.

Judge Jarro officially discharged the jury and thanked them for their assistance during the trial.

Crown prosecutor Madalyn Olivero said she would need to conference with the complainant and receive instructions from the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions on how the matter will proceed.

Ms Olivero asked for Snow’s matter to be adjourned April 24 however indicated it could be brought on earlier depending on her instructions in the next few days.

The Coolum Beach man had his bail enlarged and left the court with two supporters.

Day three – Verdict looming in boilermaker’s house party rape trial

Snow’s defence team have claimed the only reason the rape case came to trial was due to the alleged victim being caught in the act with another woman’s partner.

Defence barrister Carmen De Marco said in her closing submissions on Thursday the complainant made “multiple” omissions to police and “distorted” the truth, going against her credit in court.

Ms De Marco told the court the alleged victim “concealed evidence” of the party’s sexualised conversations, how she touched the breasts of two of her friends and tried to instigate a women’s only threesome.

The defence barrister said the complainant’s evidence only changed when she was confronted by the accounts of other partygoers of the sexually charged conversations and intimate interactions.

Blake Thomas Snow.

Ms De Marco said the alleged victim did not say stop to the boilermaker during their encounter, push him away or call for help and even opened the boot of her car so the pair could continue having sex.

She told the court the first witness heard “moaning and panting” which she told the court was consensual sex.

Ms De Marco said the alleged victim was “jovial” and laughing the next morning which wasn’t consistent with someone who was assaulted.

She pointed to the lack of injuries found on the alleged victim and how Snow and a female housemate both recounted the alleged victim “biting” their lip during kissing in different parts of the night.

Ms De Marco said what really happened was the alleged victim had been “caught” with a woman’s fiance and found herself in a “bind”.

The barrister stated even though it was “bad behaviour” on Snow’s part to cheat, it didn’t make his actions criminal.

Crown prosecutor Madalyn Olivero said it was crucial for the jury to look out for “consistency” in the evidence, and said the alleged victim was a credible witness.

Ms Olivero pointed to Snow’s “primeval” comment to a male witness only three minutes after the alleged rape, and claimed it was a “clear admission” to sexual misconduct.

He has maintained all the encounters were consensual.

The prosecutor said Snow’s admission of saying “primal” instead was not any better, and stated primal cavemen “weren’t exactly known for their civilised sexual conduct”.

“He didn’t say ‘we’ went primal … or ‘we f---ed’, if he had we might think that his story was a little bit more believable because the sex was a mutual act, consensual even,” Ms Olivero said.

“[Snow] was the one in control … he exercised that control and power over [the woman] by [allegedly] by raping her.”

Ms Olivero said Snow was thinking about a sexual encounter with multiple women when they previously spoke about their potential threesome but their only condition was there would be “no boys”.

She told the court Snow’s dream of “having or watching multiple women” fell flat and he “couldn’t help himself” in the alleged rape of the woman.

Ms Olivero said moaning and panting could also be consistent with an alleged rape, and stated how the complainant froze and did not call for help but “shut down” while she was allegedly being raped.

The jury left the court after midday to deliberate.

Day two – Threesome at centre of boilermaker’s alleged house party rape: court

Snow’s ex-partner began the first part of open court evidence on Wednesday morning where she said the women at the party, including the alleged victim, discussed a potential threesome.

The court was told the threesome was planned to take place in the bathroom of the party house following a discussion about the complainant’s sexual experiences.

Snow’s former partner said she “wasn’t into it” however the discussion continued, and said the alleged victim was being flirtatious with the girls.

In her evidence, Snow’s ex said she fell asleep during the party and did not wake until the morning. She said everything appeared to be normal between the group when she woke up.

Blake Thomas Snow pleaded not guilty to all charges.

She said the alleged victim then took her aside for a cigarette where she told Snow’s former partner the Coolum Beach man “forcefully f---ed” her.

“She was inconsolable,” the witness told the court.

In messages shown to the court, Snow and his ex-partner discussed the alleged incident, where Snow continued to state he “never” lost control and how the complainant never said stop.

The court heard that Snow in the messages claimed the alleged victim kissed him back.

His former partner told defence barrister Carmen De Marco the alleged victim apologised multiple times to her the morning after the alleged rape.

A female housemate confirmed to the court the suggestion of a threesome, and gave evidence the alleged victim was “feeling and trying to get out” their breasts during the party.

The trial is being held at the Maroochydore District Court. Picture: Patrick Woods

She also agreed about messages in their group chat about a threesome. The court was told the female housemate and the complainant kissed in the bathroom later in the night before they rejoined the party.

The female roommate gave evidence that the alleged victim told her the next day she had been allegedly sexually assaulted by Snow.

A male roommate recalled her being “distraught” while the 33-year-old “panicked” as the pair fixed their clothes moments after the alleged rape.

He gave evidence that Snow and him went inside shortly afterwards and recalled the “primeval” comment Snow made.

During a tense moment between the male roommate and Ms De Marco, the defence barrister queried him about how he used the word “distraught” to describe the woman in a conference with prosecutors in 2022, compared to his testimony on Wednesday where he said she was also crying.

The male witness stated the words were synonymous with one another, and claimed he saw her eyeliner running moments after the alleged rape.

The court heard from a forensic nurse who stated there were no obvious injuries taken from an examination of the alleged victim, however Ms Olivero said Snow’s DNA matched samples taken from the complainant’s genitalia.

Snow took the stand and said the encounter was consensual and reiterated his ex-partner gave him permission to have sex with the alleged victim.

Blake Thomas Snow was supported by two people in the public gallery during his trial.

He told the court during the evening he heard the alleged victim and the female roommate in the bathroom making “sexual moaning, panting [and] kissing” noises following an earlier discussion of a threesome.

The boilermaker recounted he later went outside to the alleged victim and asked what happened to the group sex idea to which the woman replied didn’t happen.

It was here Snow told the court he asked his ex-partner if it would go ahead and she said to go “have some fun” before he said she went back to sleep.

He returned and claimed the woman said she couldn’t do anything as his former partner was asleep in a bedroom nearby.

Snow told the court he kissed her and she kissed him back, which escalated to sex in the boot of the alleged victim’s car.

After several minutes, Snow said they were interrupted by a witness. He denied telling the male roommate later on he went “primeval” on the woman, but instead said “primal”.

In cross examination with Ms Olivero, she pointed out in text messages how he wanted to see if the alleged victim was “okay” and how he was “sorry” for how he acted. Snow said he was talking about them being interrupted during sex and how he was in a relationship.

Ms Olivero said in another message Snow said he was “ashamed” to which he replied it was because it could’ve been “organised better” than the “spur of the moment”.

Snow claimed in court he had no sexual interest in the alleged victim, but said “things heated up” after they kissed.

The Coolum Beach man then claimed the alleged slap the prosecution said occurred was a “tap” which wasn’t hard enough to hurt or bruise.

Closing remarks will be heard on Thursday.

Day one – Man allegedly went ‘primeval’ on woman in house party rape

In her openings on day one, crown prosecutor Madalyn Olivero alleged the 33-year-old Coolum Beach man indecently assaulted the victim several times in the driveway of a social gathering in 2022.

Ms Olivero told the court Snow was at the party with his partner and several mates along with the alleged victim when the group discussed sexual topics after chats about having children and body shapes.

The court was told during the discussion the alleged victim spoke about her sexual needs. Ms Olivero said her friends talked about helping the woman.

Blake Thomas Snow on the first day of his trial.

Ms Olivero said Snow was in the background of the conversation however was not involved.

Later in the evening the complainant was outside smoking a cigarette next to a car when Snow joined her. He allegedly said his partner instructed he could “go and have some fun” and could help the woman while he rubbed himself.

The woman said she didn’t want that and felt uncomfortable. He then allegedly asked her to stand up before he pinned her against a car.

Ms Olivero alleged Snow tried to kiss the woman when she grabbed his hair to pull him off.

He allegedly spun the woman around and said “do you want me to f--- your tight a---,” the court was told. She said no.

Snow allegedly spun the woman around again and slapped her, which is when the woman “left her body”, Ms Olivero said.

It’s here the prosecution alleged the Coolum Beach man digitally raped the woman despite her saying no, before he raped her orally.

Ms Olivero alleged Snow then raped the woman with his penis after he pushed her into boot of a car that she opened, where she was “stuck” in that position.

The trial is expected to run for several days. Picture: Patrick Woods

The court was told the victim didn’t consent to any of the acts, which stopped when they were interrupted by a person.

Another person came outside and asked if everything was all right and saw the pair getting dressed before the woman walked inside.

Ms Olivero said Snow told the second person he went “primeval” on the woman.

The court heard the woman went to police and to the hospital the following day.

The prosecutor said the jury would hear from the alleged victim, people from the party and be shown certain text messages.

Defence barrister Carmen De Marco told the jury to listen to the consistency of the partygoers’ accounts to police and compare it to the “inconsistency” of the woman’s version of events.

Ms De Marco said they would also hear “multiple omissions” made by the woman to police. She also asked them to pay attention to the “different version of events” the alleged victim gave prosecutors two years after the incident.

The barrister said there was no dispute sex occurred between Snow and the woman however the jury needed to decide whether the woman consented, or if the Coolum Beach man acted on an honest and mistaken belief she did. If that was the case they would return not guilty verdicts.

The court was closed for the majority of Tuesday afternoon to listen to the woman’s recording of evidence.