The former political figure arrives at court. Photo: RNZ/Calvin Samuel
- A former political figure is on trial, accused of sexually abusing two teenagers in the 1990s
- The man, in his 50s, has ongoing name suppression but it can be reported he is not a sitting MP
- The jury is hearing more from the first complainant in this case today
Warning: This story contains details of sexual abuse
One of the men accusing a former political figure of historical sexual abuse says they went to the police after seeing him in a news article.
The defendant, in his 50s, is on trial in the Auckland District Court this week, having pleaded not guilty to nine charges of indecent assault.
The charges related to two male complainants, one who was underage at the time, who say the accused sexually abused them in towns in the Auckland and Waikato regions between 1995 and 1999.
The man has ongoing name suppression but it can be reported that he was not a sitting MP.
Having watched a recorded police interview with the first complainant in this case on Monday, the jury heard more from the man in-person this morning.
He said he was assaulted by the former political figure twice and reported this to the police two decades later when he saw him in a news article, triggering a stress response.
"I struggled to picture how I was going to manage this stress going forward, thinking this could be a regular occurrence and being triggered in such a way. I had to speak the truth and get it out."
During cross-examination, defence lawyer Ian Brookie dug into the details of the complainant's story; pointing out differences in the wording of the man's accounts of what happened.
Brookie also put to the complainant that an aerial photograph of the location of the first alleged sexual assault did not match with a sketch the young man had drawn for the police in an interview.
The jury has heard the young man was first sexually assaulted in early 1995, when both he and the defendant were staying in a town in Waikato as part of a sports club trip.
It's the complainant's account that he was plied with alcohol, got drunk and woke up naked in a bed next to the defendant, who was also naked and sexually abusing him.
Brookie put to the young man that this hadn't happened and that the complainant had actually been found cold and asleep under a tree outside, given a hot shower by his peers and put naked in a sleeping bag on a floor in one of the rooms.
The young man said he had no recollection of being showered and, when challenged by Brookie, denied having never slept in a bed with the defendant.
"Are you slightly massaging this? The truth? Brookie asked.
"No," the young man replied.
The complainant denied being untruthful or experiencing problems during his interview with the police, as suggested by Brookie.
It's the Crown's case the accused "took advantage" of two teenage boys he was mentoring at a sports club by giving them alcohol at parties and abusing them when they were drunk.
The man strongly refutes these allegations, Brookie saying the two complainants are not telling the truth and the events they described simply did not happen.
The trial before Judge David Sharp is set down for five days in the Auckland District Court.
Where to get help:
Victim Support 0800 842 846
Rape Crisis 0800 88 33 00
HELP Call 24/7 (Auckland): 09 623 1700, (Wellington): 04 801 6655 - push 0 at the menu
Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAP) 022 344 0496
If it is an emergency and you feel like you or someone else is at risk, call 111.