Darwin soldier accused of groping male junior on boozy night out

A soldier is facing trial before a Defence Force Magistrates Court, accused of sexually assaulting his sleeping subordinate.

Soldiers on parade at Robertson Barracks.

A DARWIN soldier accused of sexually assaulting a sleeping male subordinate after a boozy night out has faced the first day of his trial in the Defence Force Magistrates Court.

Bombardier AR Edwards yesterday pleaded not guilty to one count of committing an indecent act without consent and one count of prejudicial conduct following the incident in June last year.

The court heard the two men were out bar hopping on a Friday night while their Darwin-based unit was stationed in Adelaide when they became separated from their colleagues.

They continued drinking until the early hours of the following morning before catching a taxi back to their accommodation at Hampstead Barracks and the junior soldier fell asleep in the back.

In giving evidence, the alleged victim told the court he woke up as the taxi approached the barracks to find Edwards’ hand inside his underwear “gripping” his genitals and “told him immediately to get off”.

The pair then walked back up to their accommodation where the victim said Edwards followed him into his room.

“He then came towards me and made me feel quite uncomfortable,” he said.

“I pushed him away in self defence, not knowing his intentions or what he wanted.

“I asked him what he was doing and to go away but he didn’t really say anything, he just kept walking towards me.”

The man said he pushed Edwards away a second time and locked himself in another room where he called Battery Sergeant Major Peter Holmes and told him Edwards was “acting a bit weird and he needed to come up”.

“I said he needed to come up and basically just keep Bombardier Edwards away from me,” he said.

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Taking the stand, BSM Holmes said as he approached the area he heard the victim say “if you do that again I’ll knock you out” and Edwards say “I’ve had enough, I know my rights, I’m going to get a lawyer”, while packing a day bag.

“I just said ‘Look mate, it’s not worth going AWOL’,” he said.

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After the scene was defused, BSM Holmes said they all went to bed and the matter was later referred to military police.

In cross examination, defence counsel Tom Berkley asked the victim if he was “just mistaken in your drunken haze”, which he denied.

“No that’s not correct, I can recall exactly what happened,” he said.

The hearing continues before Brigadier Michael Cowan in Darwin today.