Soldier who groped a female colleague’s bottom at after-party of a St Patrick’s Day parade attended by the Prince and Princess of Wales told he faces jail after being convicted
- Lance Corporal Shane Ritchie, 26, was convicted at Bulford Military Court
- He will be sentenced in May after the assault at Mons Barracks in Hampshire
A British Army soldier has been convicted of groping a female colleague at the after-party of a St Patrick’s Day parade attended by the Prince and Princess of Wales.
‘Really drunk’ Lance Corporal Shane Ritchie cupped the bottom of his colleague after sliding his hand down her back as he squeezed past her to go for a cigarette.
The 26-year-old ‘slurred his words’ before grabbing her behind during the Irish Guards’ first regimental day celebration since the pandemic.
Earlier in the day the regiment had welcomed the royal couple – then known as the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge – as guests of honour for a traditional ceremony where Kate had presented sprigs of shamrock to members of the battalion on parade.
The court heard that after the celebrations at Mons Barracks in Aldershot, Hampshire, in March last year Ritchie’s ‘creeping’ hand grabbed the bottom of his fellow soldier.
‘Really drunk’ Lance Corporal Shane Ritchie (pictured) cupped the bottom of his colleague after sliding his hand down her back as he squeezed past her to go for a cigarette
The court heard that after the celebrations at Mons Barracks in Aldershot, Hampshire, in March last year Ritchie’s ‘creeping’ hand grabbed the bottom of his fellow soldier (pictured)
He was charged with one count of sexual assault.
LCpl Ritchie, a father of two from Belfast, denied the charge, claiming that only his shoulder ‘brushed’ her and if there had been contact, it was accidental and therefore not sexual.
However he was found guilty at the end of a two day trial at Bulford Military Court, Wiltshire. He will be sentenced in May.
Addressing LCpl Ritchie, Assistant Judge Advocate General Jane England said: ‘You well know the likely consequence of somebody convicted of an offence like this.
‘The court will be considering dismissal and detention. You need to come to court prepared that might be the outcome.
‘I am not saying that to be unpleasant, but it would be unfair for you not to be aware.’
Opening the case, prosecutor Captain Daniel Lawlor, had said: ‘On March 17th last year, the complainant attended a St Patrick’s day function at a bar at Mons Barracks.
‘At the bar she was introduced to [the defendant].
Earlier in the day, the regiment had welcomed the Prince and Princess of Wales as guests of honour for a traditional ceremony
he was found guilty at the end of a two day trial at Bulford Military Court, Wiltshire (pictured)
‘The complainant will tell the court that as she was standing she felt someone touching her from behind – down her shoulder, on her back and down.
‘The two had a verbal interaction and she confronted him for grabbing her bottom.’
Giving evidence, the female soldier – who cannot be named for legal reasons – said she had been introduced to LCpl Ritchie at the St Patrick’s Day celebration.
She continued: ‘He was really drunk.
‘He looked like he couldn’t really stand up properly, couldn’t really focus his eyes on anything and when he spoke, he slurred his words.
‘After I shook his hand, he said “I’ve got a missus” but I wasn’t interested, so I left.’
She told the court she returned to some nearby sofas in the room to talk to a friend, when she felt the sexual assault take place.
‘I felt someone come behind me and put a hand on on my shoulder, slide their hand creeping down my back and then I felt them cup my bum,’ she said.
‘As soon as I felt that, I turned to the side and saw it was [LCpl Ritchie] and just pushed him away.
‘I said something like ‘get the f*** off me, don’t you dare touch me’.
‘It felt really deliberate, I could feel the pressure. It was a firm touch – a grab.’
The court heard she left the bar with a friend and immediately reported the incident to her chain of command – having texted the Regimental Sergeant Major personally and asked to see him the next week.
When it was put to her that ‘not everyone’ in the Irish Guards – which has only accepted women in full time combat roles since 2018 – was ‘not particularly enlightened or welcoming’ to women – she agreed.
Such were these attitudes, she told the court she was ‘unhappy’ in her unit and considered it a ‘hostile’ environment to work.
The court heard she had been told by a different colleague that ‘the Army is a man’s world’.
Giving evidence, LCpl Ritchie said he had left the bar to go for a smoke when he came into close proximity with the soldier.
He said: ‘Making my way past, I brushed past [the complainant] and she turned around, put her hands on my chest and accused me of touching her and told me to get off her.’
When asked to clarify how close he had been, he reiterated: ‘My shoulder brushed past her.’
The court heard LCpl Ritchie had attended the Army’s Operation Teamwork initiative – designed to tackle cultural and inclusivity issues among the service – just one month prior to the incident.
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