|
Allegations of Abuse
in NZ |
||
|
Tea Ropati - League Star accused
of rape |
||
|
Newstalk ZB The detective who interviewed a
former rugby league player accused of sexual violation has read his statement
out in court. Tea Ropati is facing six counts of
sexual violation, including rape, at a trial in the Auckland District Court,
relating to an incident in June 2006. Ropati was formally interviewed by
police nearly two months after the alleged offending took place. In his written statement, he said
he and the complainant had kissed in the back room of The Whiskey, a bar on
Auckland's Ponsonby Road. He says they were both "acting up, and taking
the mickey out of each other". The former Warriors and Kiwis
player said they both agreed to leave on the understanding he was taking her
home. But he says she would not tell him where she lived, so he pulled into a
carpark at Victoria Park, where the alleged rape took place. It was at this point, that
Ropati's lawyer asked for the court to be adjourned, because his client was
feeling sick. Earlier in the day an ESR
scientist gave evidence that lab results estimate the complainant's alcohol
level at the height of her drinking was between 238 and 296 micrograms per
100 millilitres of blood. Alan Stolz said with levels that
high, he would expect the person to experience serious intoxication. He says
because the complainant was able to enter her pin number to buy drinks, it
could have disguised her level of intoxication. |
||
