Northern Ireland

Policeman denies touching or sexually assaulting woman he tried to help

Martin Asantaempaduh said as an officer with West Midlands police, his main concern for the woman was to get her a taxi home
Martin Asantaempaduh said as an officer with West Midlands police, his main concern for the woman was to get her a taxi home Martin Asantaempaduh said as an officer with West Midlands police, his main concern for the woman was to get her a taxi home

A POLICE officer from Birmingham told a jury he had "no sexual intention" towards a woman he is accused of assaulting in south Belfast.

Martin Asantaempaduh said as an officer with West Midlands police, his main concern for the woman was to get her a taxi home.

Denying anything sexual occurred, the 50-year old father of two said there was "no way" he tampered with her clothing, saying "I didn't touch her".

The woman claimed that after she was ejected from the Eglantine Inn in the early hours of August 5, 2012, she came into contact with Asantaempaduh as she crossed Malone Road. She claimed Asantaempaduh said he was an undercover police officer, showed her his badge and asked if he could walk with her.

She said she then walked down Windsor Park with Asantaempaduh, who pushed her into bushes then straddled her as she lay on he ground.

Asantaempaduh, whose address was given c/o West Midlands police, is accused of sexually assaulting the woman, and assaulting her occasioning actual bodily harm. He denies both charges.

Her version of events was completely refuted by Asantaempaduh, who said his only concern was to get her a taxi.

Speaking from the witness box at Belfast Crown court, Asantaempaduh told the jury: "In the police, I work on an operation where we protect women on the streets of Birmingham, where we make sure they get home.

"The first thing we do is to make sure they get to a taxi - and these were my only thoughts."

He also made the case that after seeing the lights of a taxi, he walked towards the street in the hope of getting her a taxi.

The street was Windsor Park, which is where the woman alleges she was attacked.

"She embraced me, gave me a kiss and walked off towards the taxi." Saying he thought the kiss was a 'thank you', he said he then walked towards a white van as he needed to urinate," Asantaempaduh said.

"The next thing that happened was that I was grabbed and without even looking, I just pushed away. I thought I was being attacked, so I just pushed out."

He then realised it was the woman he had pushed, and she was lying unconscious on the ground.

"I knelt down and shook her shoulders to try and wake her. She didn't wake at first but then she came to and just went absolutely ballistic. She said I tried to touch her. She was screaming at me and saying all kinds of things."

Asantaempaduh was arrested a short time later. When he was asked by his barrister why he didn't give that version of events to police straight away, he replied: "I have never been in a situation like this in my life."

When asked by his barrister if he straddled the woman as she lay on the ground, he said "that is not correct." He also denied tampering with her clothes, as well as sexually assaulting her. He said: "I had no sexual intention towards this woman from the moment I met her. My only concern was to help her get home."

At hearing.