A Christchurch man charged along with the two Mama Hooch drink-spike rapists was cleared of serious sexual assault despite being filmed having group sex with a victim in the case.
The court found the woman had been drugged by one of the other defendants and convicted him of raping her.
The other man, a 38-year old, was cleared and is currently fighting to keep his name suppression. He was arrested as part of a drink spiking sting at Mama Hooch bar between 2015 and 2018.
Three men stood trial earlier this year, accused of systematically drugging and sexually assaulting multiple women at the popular night spot and a nearby restaurant.
The court found the woman had been drugged by one of the other defendants and convicted him of raping her. (Source: 1News)
They faced 126 counts between them – from rape, to stupefying and disabling – accused of working together and often jointly charged, with victims claiming they blacked out after consuming drinks or substances they’d been given.
Two were found guilty on 68 of those charges, including the worst of the drugging and sexual assault. But the other man was only stung with a minor charge of offering to supply a Class B drug in a bar where drugs were commonly taken in the toilets.
Much of his defence came down to the question of consent.
Prosecutors had argued he’d helped to drug three women, and raped one of them.
Whatsapp messages showed he was in regular conversation with the other men – who are now convicted rapists – often making highly sexual comments, as photos of potential targets were shared in the chat.
His comments included quips like “f**k you, those t***ies* are mine”, or “this one is mine”, with the man also asking his friends to “take a better pic” of a woman from behind on one occasion.
At another point, he joked about a date rape drug, writing: “Did you buy her a Roofiecolada”?
The pair spun five years of lies and often blamed their victims. (Source: 1News)
Caught on camera: Man filmed having group sex
During the trial, heard in the Christchurch District Court in February and March, the court was played a video of the man engaging in group sex with a woman – the court finding she had been drugged.
Two men were involved; one was found guilty of stupefying and rape, but the other was found not guilty.
The victim told the court she’d been given a substance. After consuming it, she lost parts of her memory.
“I just remember I was asking for a lot of water, my mouth was so dry,” she told police afterwards.
“All that was going through my head is, ‘can I even say no to what’s happening?’”
Her next memory was having sex with two men, she said. The incident was filmed by one of them.
In a police interview several months later, one of those men – the one who would later be acquitted – claimed it was consensual.
“We always had a connection, we always had flirting and things like that,” he told police.
“Unconsensual is when you force someone, I believe, to do things that they don’t like to, and this is nothing like that.”
He stressed it was “110 percent consensual,”, adding: “I never have the need to force anyone.”.
The officer responded: “Unless they’re stupefied by drugs, and not in control of their actions.”
The interview ended soon afterwards, with the man asking to speak to a lawyer.
It comes following a multi-year investigation into drink spiking at inner city bar Mama Hooch and a local restaurant. (Source: 1News)
Man cleared, cries as verdict read
A key question for the judge was whether the woman involved was capable of consenting.
In the video, which was played in court, she was shown participating in the sex, but was clearly inebriated. Her speech was slurred and was having difficulty keeping her eyes open, at times even struggling to stand.
While she had been drinking that night, the Crown proved she’d also been drugged; potentially with the party drug MDMA.
At trial, prosecutors called on Professor Olaf Drummer, a highly experienced forensic toxicologist at Monash University in Melbourne, who said MDMA appeared to increase “sexual arousal”.
“Since MDMA increases empathy and sociability of users - and in particular, with alcohol, reduced inhibitions - it’s likely to lead to reduced ability to resist sexual advances and assaults,” Professor Drummer said.
In the end, it came down to who actually knew about the drugging.
One man was found guilty of stupefaction and rape, meaning he drugged her. But the other was cleared, with no proof he knew about the drugs, and the judge accepting his claim he thought the interaction was consensual.
When the final decision came in, the man started crying in the dock; his tears coming at a stark contrast to the other two men sitting beside him, who were found guilty or admitted guilt on 68 charges between them.
His friends were led away to jail, where they are awaiting sentencing.
He stepped out in the street, with just one minor charge to be dealt with.
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