US woman says RCB player molested her

DHNS

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New Delhi, 18 May 2012: Royal Challen­gers Bangalore’s player from Australia Luke Pomersbach was on Friday arrested for allegedly molesting a US woman and assaulting her fiancee in a five-star hotel here.

 

A city court granted a day’s interim bail to Pomersbach in the afternoon. The Aussie, who has not played a single game in the Indian Premier League (IPL)’s fifth edition, allegedly molested Zohal Hameed at the ITC Maurya hotel early Friday morning after a late-night party. He also bashed up her fiance Sahil Peerzada who tried to stop him. Peerzada was admitted to Primus hospital, police said.

 

According Zohal, Pomersbach, along with some others, joined her and her fiance for a drink. Later, Pomersbach forcibly entered her room and tried to molest her, Zohal said. Her fiance tried to intervene, but was assaulted by the cricketer, she said.

 

“He gave me a nasty look and it seemed that he will rape me. I ran out of the door and asked for the security personnel, who said ‘It is going to be fine’. My fiance was beaten and there was blood all over the place, and I was running back to help him,” the victim recounted.

 

Zohal said the hotel staff did not cooperate with her in calling the police. “They never called the police. I called the police myself. They did not give any medical assistance either,” she said. Police rushed to the spot and took Sahil Peerzada to the hospital and then arrested Pomersbach in the morning.

 

The 27-year-old right-handed batsman was taken to Ram Manohar Lohia hospital for a medical check-up. He fainted when he was produced in the Patiala House court. Pomersbach said he did enter the victim’s room with her consent.

 

The magistrate released him on a day’s bail and told police to come with the CCTV footage from the hotel on Saturday for proceedings. A case has been registered against Pomersbach at the Chanakyapuri Police Station under Indian Penal Code’s section 354 (outraging modesty of woman), 323 (hurt), 454 (house trespass) and 511 (Punishment for attempting to commit offences punishable with imprisonment for life or other imprisonment).

 

Doctors said Peerzada’s condition was stable, but he may suffer from loss of hearing in his left ear. “ When he came to the hospital, blood was oozing out from the left ear and he was in trauma. His CT scan was normal… The current condition of the patient is stable, but he is complaining of loss of hearing in the left ear and it will take some time to find out what the reason is,” D K Baluja, Primus executive director, said.