Rape suspect says victim was drunk

National

A 28-YEAR-OLD man charged with raping a 17-year-old girl in 2016 claimed that he had been wrongly accused because the victim was drunk.
In his written statement to the Waigani Committal Court last Friday, Douglas Vai, from Gaiva-Kala village in Abau, Central, claimed: “I felt sorry for her and escorted her all the way to her house.”
According to police files, the alleged rape occurred on Sept 24, 2016, in Gauna Gaudi street in Gerehu Stage 1, Port Moresby, where Vai and his cousins, Nimrod Mea, 18, and Lua Von, 28, were drinking at their aunt’s house.
The trio allegedly took turns to rape the girl whose home was on the same street.
The girl was returning from a canteen when she saw Mea standing in front of the gate and asked him about her memory card.
He then pulled her to the back of the house and fondled her breasts and used his fingers to fondle her vagina.
Mea allegedly tried to force her to perform oral sex on him but she refused. He then stripped her and performed oral sex on her.
He tried to have sexual intercourse with her but she resisted. Mea then took her clothes and left, leaving her naked.
Von then approached her and forcefully inserted his fingers into her vagina and asked her to have sexual intercourse.
She refused and Von allegedly threatened to keep her naked until the next morning and forced her to perform oral sex on him.
Vai then allegedly threatened to stab the girl with a knife and forced her to perform oral sex on him.
They (Von and Vai) then raped the girl.
They told her to remain where she was but she ran.
Vai chased and punched her in the face. She screamed and Vai let her go.
She grabbed two shirts, covered her body and ran away.
Vai followed and punched her again. The girl then returned the shirts to Vai and pleaded for the return of her clothes.
She got dressed and walked home.
She hid herself in the garden, fearing that she would be beaten by her parents. Her parents found out and questioned her and they lodged a police report.
The case was previously struck out due to want of prosecution but Vai was rearrested this year.
In his statement, Vai said he was drinking with his cousins, Mea, Brandon Kiri and Tua Kiri.
He said Tua then called his girlfriend to join them.
“We drank until 9pm. When we ran out of cigarettes, Mea and Brandon went outside to look for cigarettes,” he said.
“I went up to the house and tried to calm my aunt who was furious about the noise created by the girl, who was by now drunk and creating a nuisance.”
Vai said he told Tua to calm down his girlfriend. Tua moved to console her but Vai realised they wanted to have sex.
He said he went outside for about 30 minutes and decided to go and check on the couple.
“As I walked in, I saw the girl running unsteadily towards the gate. She was half naked and covered her body with two shirts.
“I felt sorry for her and escorted her home where she begged me to leave her behind their garden.
“There are no other statements from any witnesses saying that they saw me sexually abusing her.
The only statement was from the victim herself who was drunk at that time and her recollection of events is impaired by her state of drunkenness.”
Magistrate Ernest Wilmot adjourned the matter to Aug 30 for ruling.