Woman found it ‘shocking’ that a male rather than female officer was sent to do a welfare check before he ‘sexually assaulted her in hotel’ after she fled husband, court hears
- Woman in her 20s said she expected a female officer to be sent to the hotel room
- Her husband reported her missing to police after she left following an argument
- PC Rudvelle Walters, 48, accused of putting his hand in the woman’s underwear
- He denies one count of sexually assaulting the woman during the welfare check
A woman found it ‘shocking’ that a male police officer was sent to do a welfare check on her during which he sexually assaulted her after she fled to a hotel to escape her husband, a court has heard.
The woman, who is in her 20s and cannot be identified for legal reasons, said she expected a female officer to be sent to her hotel room after her husband contacted police to report her missing following an argument.
It was during the welfare check that Metropolitan PC Rudvelle Walters, 48, is alleged to have put his hand into the woman’s underwear after earlier saying he would only leave her hotel room if her friend, who was also present, gave him a kiss.
He denies one count of sexually assaulting the woman while carrying out a welfare check at the Best Western hotel in Wembley, north-west London, where she was staying on February 5, 2019.
PC Rudvelle Walters, 48, (pictured outside Southwark Crown Court yesterday) is charged with the sexual assault of a woman in a Wembley hotel
In a video-recorded interview with police, played at Southwark Crown Court on Tuesday, the woman said she felt ‘uncomfortable’ when Walters came into her room to ask her questions.
‘It was shocking for me that he came to check on us in the hotel. I would have expected a female officer to come rather than a single male officer to check on two girls,’ she said.
‘I said ”I am in the hotel with my friend, a girl, two ladies”. He said ”I must come in”.’
The woman said she was also frightened because she feared that Walters was not a police officer, but a man sent by her husband.
She said: ‘He said he needs to come in and speak to me … I was very uncomfortable.’
The witness told police in interview that she might have been laughing during her conversation with Walters – a reaction to being in a stressful situation.
The officer, who was attached to the North West Command Unit, denies the assault and claims the two women aggressively gave him a ‘bear hug’
She said: ‘I was very stressed because the situation that led me to being in the hotel was really unpleasant, I simply escaped to that hotel to feel safe.
‘I was very stressed but, as I explained, sometimes I react with laughter to stressful situations.’
The court heard there was evidence that a smiley face emoji was sent from the woman’s Facebook account to Walters’ account at around 6.20am, the time during which the officer was in the hotel, and that Walters’ account sent two messages nearly two hours later saying hello.
However, the woman denied she had sent the initial message.
She told the police in interview: ‘I understand why you are asking me about this.
‘But if I report this officer slapped me on the bottom, tried to kiss my friend, and slipped his hand in my knickers, I don’t think it’s that relevant – it is not about messages on Instagram or Facebook, it’s about a sexual assault.
‘It’s about what happened in the room.’
The defendant denies one charge of sexual assault at the Best Western in Wembley, and claims the two women became ‘overfamiliar whilst speaking to him’.
The trial continues.