By Anna Olsen and Kacie Williams
DUBLIN, CA – A judge at a preliminary hearing here Monday in Alameda County Superior Court found that the accused, who faces a charge of forcible sexual penetration with a foreign object, should stand trial, and will be arraigned Aug. 8.
A neighbor of the accused and victim of the crime took the stand to explain what happened on Jan. 9, the day of the incident.
The accused was hired, testified the victim, as an in-home massage therapist by the victim. On the day of the appointment, they spoke briefly about what the massage would entail which included a “full body massage” of the shoulders, back and legs.
The victim entered the room where the massage would take place and undressed. When she was ready, the victim called the accused to enter the room.
The victim said the accused massaged her shoulders for 10 seconds before she was sexually violated.
When it happened, the victim said she stood up and covered herself. She explained later that she “felt violated,” and added, “I didn’t feel good about myself and I kind of felt like I was taken advantage of a little bit.”
The victim explained that she did not tell the accused to stop during the incident, which lasted about three seconds, because she froze and was in shock.
“I’m still in shock to this day,” she explained to the court.
The victim explained that the incident did not appear to be a big deal to the accused as he still asked the victim to pay her for the services the day after the incident.
The victim was willing to pay the accused for the massage at first, explaining that she “didn’t agree with what happened at the time and I would just pay him to forget about it.”
The victim was asked why the accused seemed unbothered by the incident, asking her if it “was accidental touching.”
“No,” the victim responded, adding the accused “was perverted.”
The victim filed a police report on Jan. 17, eight days after the incident took place.
When the victim was questioned regarding why time passed between the incident and police contact, she explained she thought it was her fault and that she “wanted to sweep it under the rug.”
When asked what changed her mind, the victim explained that “I don’t deserve to be violated that way. I wanted to stand up for myself.”
