Massage therapist accused of sexual assault of woman

Tom Tuite

A holistic therapist in Dublin has been accused of sexually assaulting a woman during a massage appointment as she was “pinned to the table”.

The accused, a foreign national in his 30s, appeared before Judge Derek Cooney at Dublin District Court on Saturday.

He cannot be named for legal reasons and is charged with sexually assaulting the woman on a date earlier this month after he allegedly became "obsessed" with her.

Objecting to bail, a local detective garda cited the seriousness of the case and flight risk concerns.

He said the man had no ties to the State and was from a nation with no extradition treaty with Ireland.

The court heard the accused “made no reply” when charged.

Judge Cooney heard it was alleged the complainant’s partner had booked her in for a treatment session.

She had received treatment from the accused previously and had always found him extremely professional.

The court heard that on the date of her latest appointment, the accused brought her to a therapy room and he left as she removed her clothing using towels to cover her breasts and lower body, and she kept her underwear on under the towel.

It was alleged that the accused returned and told her to relax and commenced working on her, which she found aggressive and sore.

The court heard he then “moved to her chest area quite quickly in a criss-cross motion to knock the towel off her breasts”.

The detective stated the man massaged her breasts in a criss-cross motion for six or seven minutes. It was claimed he used one of his hands to enter her underwear.

The woman reported that he “hooked” her legs with his arms up in the air, which she believed was to view her vaginal area.

She froze and was then “pinned to the table” but she tried to distract him by asking him about her shoulders. However, it was alleged, he then turned her over and began to massage her buttocks.

The woman informed gardaí that the accused was breathing heavily, profusely sweating and smelling her hair.

The contested bail hearing was told that he said "he wished he could massage her every day because he thought her body was hot".

The woman left and told her partner, who called gardaí immediately, and the woman who had bruising made a detailed statement.

The offence on conviction carries a maximum five-year sentence.

The accused, who has yet to indicate a plea, listened to the proceedings with the aid of an interpreter and did not address the court.

The detective feared he may have become "obsessed” with the woman, who could have accessed her details from the booking system in his workplace, which has terminated his employment.

Gardaí expect there to be a “number of other charges”, the court heard.

Cross-examined by defence solicitor Paul Byrne, he agreed the accused had lived in Ireland for several years and had no prior convictions.

The court heard he had no warrant history and his address in Dublin was known to gardaí. Mr Byrne argued that his client had an address in Ireland.

Judge Cooney noted the two-year delay in reaching trials in the Circuit Court. He took into account that the man had no prior convictions.

Bail was set in his bond of €1,000, and the judge stipulated that an independent surety must lodge €5,000 to secure his release, after which he would have to obey several conditions.

He was remanded in custody to appear again next week pending directions from the Director of Public Prosecutions.

If you have been affected by any of the issues raised in this article, you can call the national 24-hour Rape Crisis Helpline at 1800-77 8888, access text service and webchat options at drcc.ie/services/helpline/ or visit Rape Crisis Help.