Sexual touching case dismissed

National

By TABITHA NERO
It is not wrong to pray for sick people but going beyond that can result in incidents, says Waigani Committal Court magistrate Cosmas Bidar.
“Some people claim to have healing powers and tend to do unusual things,” Bidar said.
He made the comments after dismissing the case of a man who allegedly touched a woman sexually without her consent while performing an alleged healing act.
Joseph Ori from Gulf was charged with sexually touching a woman at Air Traffic Services (ATS) Block 1 at 8-Mile in the National Capital District on Oct 20, last year.
The court heard that Ori who allegedly claimed to possess healing powers was brought by the relatives of the victim to her because she was sick.
The court heard that Ori told the victim to go to the bathroom and he allegedly poured some water over her.
Ori then told the victim to lift her skirt and he allegedly rubbed his penis between her buttocks while claiming that it was part of the “healing process”.
Bidar told the court that there was no utility in the matter and that there was not enough evidence to commit Ori to stand trial to the National Court. He also said that the alleged incident occurred on Oct 20, last year, after which the victim believed that she was going to receive her healing with the help of Ori, but failed to report the matter until April this year.
Bidar dismissed the case and ordered a refund of Ori’s bail money.