Fitness coach guilty of ‘predatory’ sex attack on woman and ‘covert’ recordings of females
By Tom Tuite
A personal trainer who made covert recordings of females has also been convicted of a “predatory” sexual assault on a woman who sought treatment for chronic back problems.
The fitness expert, in his 30s, now awaits sentencing for the 2021 sexual assault and a second charge on the same indictment for offensive conduct of a sexual nature by making covert digital recordings of females without their knowledge or consent at a gym over two years.
It follows a six-day trial before Judge Ronan Munro and a jury of nine men and three women at Mullingar Circuit Criminal Court.
Jurors were told that after participating in an online exercise programme with the trainer, the woman in her mid-20s, who’d had scoliosis for years, had an in-person appointment in early 2021.
But during massage therapy, the accused asked if she wanted a “happy ending” massage, and he made a series of inappropriate comments and touched her breasts, vagina, pubic area and buttocks.
He is not being named because reporting restrictions were imposed in May, when he pleaded guilty to the covert recording offence, to protect the integrity of the trial process for the contested sexual assault.
Judge Munro noted the state’s view was the man could now be named while the complainant had the right to anonymity. He said the restrictions remain in place until that issue is decided on Friday, when the case resumes for a victim impact statement and a mitigation plea.
The court heard that the trainer told the woman, “You are bold, you are bold, I would say you’re wild”.
The woman blamed herself for letting it happen but said she just froze. She told the jury that he said to her: “This never happened to me before, but I’m getting hard working on you,” and touched her breast, vagina, and buttocks.
She wept tears of relief while the accused silently shook his head and sat impassively as the verdict was read.
The victim had told the trial she wanted to be clear that she went for help for scoliosis, which she had suffered from since she was 14, and nothing else and would not be in court more than three years later for any other reason.
“I’m here to make sure what he did to me is not going to happen to any other woman,” she had said, adding, “and the things he is saying I said are completely untrue.”
Ed O’Mahony, BL, prosecuting, instructed by state solicitor Matt Shaw, had told the jurors that they had to consider all the evidence and it was up to them whether it was legitimate therapeutic treatment, but the prosecution contended that it crossed the threshold of indecency.
The man denied the sexual assault.
He did not testify during the trial but had given a statement to Divisional Protective Services Unit Detective Sergeant Niall Smyth. In his account, he claimed he had not touched her vagina or breasts and accused the injured party of being “wild” or “gamey”. He claimed he had to “shoot her down” when she got the wrong idea and “crossed the line” during the massage.
However, after reviewing the evidence and deliberating for five hours, the jury delivered a unanimous guilty verdict on four counts of sexual assault.
Judge Munro remanded the man, who has no previous convictions, on bail pending sentencing, but ordered him not to carry out any treatments because of the “predatory aspect to the crimes committed”.
He said the man, who did not address the court, was in a “grave situation”, and given the gravity of the offence, the defence needed time to prepare mitigation.
In evidence, the woman told the jury that she played sports and had got help for her scoliosis and severe back pain. She had been doing generic programmes but wanted expert treatment and had heard about the accused.
The court heard he was not a qualified physiotherapist but had completed other courses and obtained qualifications in neuromuscular therapy and as a strengthening and conditioning coach.
She contacted him via social media and email. The woman recalled that he sent her a list of calories, exercises and a diet, and she was instructed to send him photos to gauge fat loss.
She booked time off work, got a letter to travel to comply with Covid-19 rules, and drove to the appointment just over two weeks later.
She went to a room with a massage table. She told the trial that she wore cycling shorts and a long-sleeve top.
The complainant said the accused got her to stand and “looked me up and down” and put one hand on her right rib cage, and the other whole hand covered her left breast for a couple of seconds.
The woman said he told her it was her pectoral muscle, and tension was causing her back issues.
She thought it was unusual but trusted in his professional judgement and that it was part of the normal process. The victim said he told her to take off her top and shoes. She still had a sports bra on and lay face down, and he got a towel.
She remembered that he told her to put it over her back and carried on working on her.
The woman alleged he later wanted to work on her back and told her to take off her top, and went out but returned quickly, and she dived down on the bed to cover up because she was completely exposed.
She alleged the accused did not give a warning that he was coming back, and she was still trying to get her top off.
The woman said she lay face down, and he began rubbing her belly with both hands, which she found unusual and never received previously during treatment for her back problems.
The complainant said he began making inappropriate comments; she alleged he told her, “You’re in some nick” and “You’re in some shape”. She claimed he told her that her job must be stressful “and asked if I had ever had a massage with a happy ending”, which she understood to be a sexual massage.
She told the jury she replied “No” and thought he was testing how she would respond.
The woman said he asked her to pull down her shorts, which she said was normal for physio, and he began to work on her hip bone. She said that a towel or blanket was moved down and alleged that he pushed really hard near her tailbone on her buttocks; it was painful and he gave a scientific explanation.
The woman recalled how he told her to take off her shorts and stepped out, but she did not have a chance to reposition the towel before he came back without announcing himself and told her “he would have taken them off me quicker”.
She was wearing just a thong and was covered with the towel, and he continued to work on her glutes and hip before she was asked to turn on her back.
The woman said she rolled over and was face up, and he asked her if she wanted to put on an audio-visual headset, and she did.
The woman alleged that he moved the headphones to tell her he was going to work on her chest and groin in case she thought he was “at something”.
Around that time, the court heard, he told her: “This never happened to me before, but I’m getting hard working on you.” She ignored it and closed her eyes, and she recalled freezing a lot more.
The complainant said that as he worked on her chest and neck, he removed the towel and touched both her breasts lightly with his fingers, like a massage, as she lay face up. The woman accused him of rubbing the whole way to her hips and said he used scientific terms to explain what he was doing.
She told the jury that he commented that he was going to lose his job over her and that he was wondering if she was thinking the same thing, but she told him “absolutely not” and that she, unlike him, had self-control.
The jury heard he told her, “You are bold, you are bold, I would say you’re wild.”
The complainant said she was terrified, so she put the headphones and goggles back on as a distraction and kept her eyes closed. She said he told her he was releasing a pressure point and touched her vagina.
The woman told the court she asked him what he was doing, and he used a scientific name.
She testified that it was “absolutely not” similar to groin injury treatment she received previously, and she had no control of the situation lying there with no clothes other than a thong.
When she stood up, she crossed her hands over her top, and he cracked her back, she said.
The woman alleged the accused told her that he would finish her off in 30 seconds with just his hands. “When I said no, he said, ‘You wouldn’t be saying that if I had my clothes off’,” she alleged.
She told the jury he told her she did not have to pay, but she did, and she also took part in exercises for 20 minutes with another staff member in another part of the building.
The complainant said she met and told a friend who lived in the area just after she left, and later called her sister, and she blamed herself for letting it happen, but she just froze.
She received another message via Instagram two hours after leaving the gym.
The complainant said it read: “Testosterone went through the roof; I didn’t expect that.” It also had a monkey covering its eyes emoji and she took a screenshot, which was tendered to court as an exhibit.
In his denials, the man claimed he sent the message to diffuse the situation and that he had a partner and would not risk that relationship.
However, the jury convicted him of the sexual assault.
The covert recordings offences, under the Criminal Law Sexual Offences Act 2017, happened from July 7, 2018, until August 17, 2020. The facts of that charge are to be given when the case resumes.
Judge Munro thanked the jurors for performing their civic duty and excused them from jury service for five years.