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Allegations of abuse by
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Home / police allegations / Rickards,
Shipton, Schollum vs Jane Doe Page 1 - 2007 Trial of
Rickards, Shipton, Schollum Week 1 |
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For the second time in a year a
top policeman is back on trial over allegations of sexual abuse more than 20
years ago when the complainant was a teenager. Suspended Assistant Commissioner
Clint Rickards, along with former colleagues Brad Shipton and Bob Schollum,
deny the charges. After almost a year of speculation
the latest charges against them can be made public. Each faces one charge of
kidnap and another of indecent assault. It is alleged the offending
happened in Rotorua more than 20 years ago when the female complainant was
16. Shipton, a former policeman and
Tauranga city councillor, admits he was having a consensual sexual
relationship with the woman. But the Crown claims there was one
incident, where the teenager went to a house where the three men were
drinking. It says the men carried her against her will into a bedroom where
she was handcuffed before Shipton straddled her and sexually assaulted her
with a liquor bottle. It says she was yelling and
screaming and begging them to stop. All three men sat together in
court, loudly denying both charges. Their partners and family were there to
support them. Rickards denies he has ever met
the woman. It was Louise Nicholas'
allegation's that prompted police to first investigate the men. They found this latest complainant's
name and telephone number on Shipton's police notepads from the time. When
they approached her she made the allegations. Public outrage followed the trio's
acquittal in the Nicholas case. But the lawyers and the judge have
urged the jury to put aside any knowledge and prejudices from last year's
trial, and to judge the men on this case. The complainant will give evidence
on Tuesday. |
