A 19-year-old woman was “sobbing” and had put her pants on backwards in her rush to leave an Airbnb after allegedly being gang-raped by three men at a stag party, a court has been told.
Andrew David, 30, and brothers Maurice Hawell, 30, and Marius Hawell, 22, have pleaded not guilty to charges of aggravated sexual assault in company, attempted aggravated sexual assault in company and aggravated sexual contact.
The trio had been celebrating Maurice’s upcoming wedding with a stag do in Newcastle one weekend in February 2022 when they allegedly gang-raped three women.
Prosecutors say the three men sexually assaulted two 18-year-old women on Friday night before attacking a 19-year-old woman the following night.
Maurice and Mr David maintain that all sexual activity was consensual, while Marius claims he did not participate in any of the sexual incidents during the stag weekend.
The three men faced a trial lasting several weeks in the New South Wales District Court over allegations they were involved in a joint criminal enterprise that was reckless with the women’s consent.
In his closing arguments Tuesday, Crown prosecutor Craig Evans said the men knew the women were not consenting to forced group sex and were reckless with their consent.
He asked the jury to consider the men’s mental state at the time of the alleged gang rapes as a factor in determining whether the trio was guilty of the sexual assaults.
Andrew David, 30, and his brothers Maurice Hawell, 30, and Marius Hawell, 22, have pleaded not guilty to multiple charges.
Andrew David, 30, and his brothers Maurice Hawell, 30, and Marius Hawell, 22, had been celebrating Maurice’s upcoming wedding with a stag do in Newcastle.
Mr Evans highlighted Maurice’s requests for his friend to join them while he had consensual sex with an 18-year-old woman on Friday night and his sexual contact with another 18-year-old woman who had rejected his proposal for a threesome.
“Maurice was in a state of mind where he sought out group sex without regard to consent,” the Crown prosecutor said.
She claimed that both Maurice and Mr David had continually sought out opportunities to have group sex throughout the weekend, whether consensual or not.
As for Marius, Mr Evans said he had demonstrated “the pursuit of (sexual) opportunities with others” in his actions over the weekend.
After two teenagers were driven back to the group’s Airbnb on Friday night, Marius ran out of the pub shortly after buying a drink, Evans told the court.
He urged jurors to consider “the haste in which he leaves and the timing of his departure.”
Marius then allegedly entered the room where the two 18-year-old women were being gang-raped and became involved in the assaults.
He entered the room “with the mindset to engage in sexual activity,” the Crown prosecutor said.
The following night, Marius was allegedly inside a bedroom watching a 19-year-old woman being sexually assaulted by his older brother and Mr. David.
Mr Evans said Marius used his torch to illuminate the dark room and did not stop the sexual activity despite seeing the woman pinned to the bed and unable to move.
The court heard the woman had put her trousers on backwards in her rush to leave the flat after the alleged assaults and was “sobbing”.
In closing arguments Tuesday, the Crown prosecutor asked the jury to consider the men’s mental state at the time of the alleged gang rapes as a factor in determining whether the trio is guilty of the sexual assaults.
Mr Evans highlighted Maurice’s requests for his friend to join them while he had consensual sex with an 18-year-old woman on Friday night and his sexual contact with another 18-year-old woman who had rejected his proposal for a threesome.
“Maurice was in a state of mind where he sought out group sex without regard to consent,” the Crown prosecutor said.
She claimed that both Maurice and Mr David had continually sought out opportunities to have group sex throughout the weekend, whether consensual or not.
As for Marius, Mr Evans said he had demonstrated “the pursuit of (sexual) opportunities with others” in his actions over the weekend.
After two teenagers were driven back to the group’s Airbnb on Friday night, Marius ran out of the pub shortly after buying a drink, Evans told the court.
He urged jurors to consider “the haste in which he leaves and the timing of his departure.”
In his address to jurors, Marius’ attorney Scott Corrish said they “can never be convinced beyond a reasonable doubt that he is a rapist.”
“No person has pointed the finger and said he committed any criminal sexual act or even said he was seen without shoes or socks,” he said.
‘Although no one says that Marius Hawell put his penis in my vagina or his penis in my mouth, the crown says that Marius is a rapist.’
Mr Corrish argued that the jury also could not be convinced that Marius had been part of an agreement to engage in sexual assault with his older brother and Mr David.
He said the case against his client hinged in part on “demonstrably flawed” evidence from a woman who had been in the apartment on Saturday night.
The woman had given evidence about who entered the bedroom where a 19-year-old woman was allegedly being gang-raped, but Mr Corrish said she had her back to the room.
He also noted that the woman’s account of which stag party attendees had accompanied her out of the Airbnb had been contradicted by CCTV footage.
“You are being asked to find Marius guilty based on that evidence,” his lawyer said.
‘A test that is not only suspicious but demonstrably incorrect.’
He also questioned the prosecution’s argument that sperm found on a T-shirt linked Marius to the alleged gang rapes on Friday night.
The trial continues
