Tauranga man Raveen Saily faces trial for rape in public changing rooms in Mount Maunganui

He then allegedly raped her and abused her repeatedly.

The 23-year-old will appear before the Tauranga District Court this week. He is accused of sexual assault, rape and sexual harassment through unlawful sexual intercourse.

He was 20 when he and the plaintiff began exchanging messages via social media.

They were introduced to each other by a friend of the plaintiff who had met Saily online.

Prior to the alleged incident, Saily and the girl had exchanged messages on Snapchat, with him allegedly using the pseudonym “John.” The girl did not know his real name, and he did not use it on any of his social media profiles.

On October 25, 2021, the girl took a bus to the Bayfair shopping centre in Mount Maunganui. The two met and went inside before deciding to take a walk around the nearby Arataki Skatepark.

The court heard that Saily was carrying a folding knife, which he repeatedly threw on the ground as he walked.

Prosecutors allege that when they reached the changing room and toilet block at the Arataki Community Centre, Saily violently grabbed the girl by the arm, dragged her towards the entrance of the changing rooms and said: “Go in, I have a knife.”

Prosecutor Hannah Speight said Saily told the girl he would hurt her with the knife if she did not do what she was told.

Terrified, the girl went inside, where she was allegedly forced to perform oral sex on him after he took off her dress, touched her breasts and pulled down her underwear.

Speight said the abuse caused the girl discomfort, which at one point led to vomiting.

He then allegedly raped her before bending her over a bench and abusing her further.

Speight said the couple heard people outside the restroom building, so Saily turned on the shower and told the girl to wait inside until he signaled her to come out.

About five minutes later, the girl left the dressing room and Saily accompanied her back to the bus stop.

The girl then informed her sister about the incident and a report was filed with the police the same day.

Saily's attorney Bill Nabney said there was no doubt that the sexual acts took place, but they were consensual.

The jury does not need to worry too much about the scientific evidence of the presence of sperm, since the alleged acts are considered proven. However, the defense argues that the plaintiff consented, or that Saily at least honestly believed that she consented.

The trial before Judge Bill Lawson is expected to last three days.

Hannah Bartlett is a Tauranga-based Open Justice reporter with NZME. She previously covered courts and local government for the Nelson Mail and before that was a radio reporter with Newstalk ZB.