Commonwealth Games: Papua New Guinea weightlifter on trial for sex assault

LONDON (AFP) - A Commonwealth Games weightlifter from Papua New Guinea went on trial in the host city of Glasgow on Monday accused of sexually assaulting another man in a supermarket toilet.

Toua Udia, 22, denies intentionally or recklessly touching the man's testicles on July 21 in a Tesco coffee shop lavatory near the athletes' village.

The Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games concluded on Sunday.

Udia's accuser, who cannot be identified, told a Glasgow court that the weightlifter touched his testicles while he helped him strap an ice pack to his leg.

"I came out of the cubicle and saw him strapping a bandage to his left calf," he told the court. "I asked him: 'Are you okay?'.

He asked me if I could help him tie the bandage. "I took both ends of the bandage and he said: 'Pull it tight'.

"I held it as tight as I could and he put his left hand between my legs and touched my testicle with two fingers.

"There was a bit of pressure. It wasn't a scuff and it wasn't a total grab, but it was definitely as if someone was poking.

"I said: 'Hey!' to tell him to back off. He looked at me and just smiled as though it was normal, with a wee smirk, as if everything was fine."

The man said he did not consent to the contact or wish it to happen, and that he left the loo and alerted staff and the police.

Police officer Jamie Carr told the court that Udia spoke to him after the alleged incident.

"He (Udia) said that a male came out of the cubicle and that he had asked this male for assistance to help him strap the ice pack to his leg with a shirt," Carr said.

"He then said that both him and the other male were tying the shirt and at this point the accused said his hand slipped and accidentally hit the other male.

"He then pointed to his groin area to suggest that is where he hit him."

The court heard from a Tesco shop assistant and a security guard who both said they were sceptical about the alleged victim's accusations when he initially approached them.

The case continues Tuesday.

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