Captain William Howieson pleads not guilty to exposing penis to nurse
An army captain is accused of repeatedly exposing his erect penis while on a top foreign affairs posting and tried to trick a nurse into performing sex acts on him, a court has heard.
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An army officer on a top foreign affairs posting has been accused of repeatedly exposing his erect penis and trying to trick a nurse into masturbating him, a court has heard.
Captain William Michael Howieson, 29, fronted an Australian Defence Force Court Martial in Canberra on Monday, where he pleaded not guilty to three counts of indecency and one count of conduct likely to bring discredit on the defence force.
Captain Howieson, from Toowoomba, was the army’s liaison officer with the Papua New Guinea defence force in 2018 in the lead-up to the APEC leaders summit.
His alleged offending took place when he was based at Taurama Barracks outside Port Moresby, but the laws governing Australian military discipline means he is facing a military court martial.
Prosecuting officer Brigadier Jennifer Woodward told the panel of senior officers — which has a role similar to a jury — that Captain Howieson had a “tendency to act in a particular way ... to indecently expose his penis to female members of the Papua New Guinea defence force”.
“Quite surprisingly ... there is no alcohol involved in this case,” Brigadier Woodward said.
The allegations against Captain Howieson are that he went to a barracks medical clinic early one morning in November 2018 and asked a nurse to inspect a “lump” on his penis.
It is alleged he dropped his exercise shorts, revealing an erection.
The nurse, giving evidence on Monday, said Captain Howieson had refused a male nurse oversee the examination, saying he it would make him uncomfortable.
“When he pulled down his shorts he was already fully erected,” the nurse said.
“He said, ‘have a feel’.
“I said, ‘Captain Howieson, actually there is no lump in this area’.”
After telling the officer to put his shorts back on, it is alleged he dropped them again and asked the nurse to have another feel.
“(He) said there is a lump there, and I said, ‘no, I have already done the examination and there is no lump there’,” the nurse said.
Another nurse said Captain Howieson was the only Australian officer who had ever come to the barracks clinic for treatment.
Captain Howieson allegedly returned with a signed note later that day, which he claimed was from a doctor, and told the nurse she needed to help him donate sperm five times over the next five days.
The nurse said she handed him a cup and sent him to a room alone, saying: “You need to go and masturbate yourself in there”.
The nurse said Captain Howieson told her “but the paper says that you need to assist”.
Captain Howieson is also accused of exposing himself to a second woman while he stood in a banana plantation.
The court martial continues.
Originally published as Captain William Howieson pleads not guilty to exposing penis to nurse