Woman charged over accusations of 'unwanted sexual advances' by cable repairman

The woman has been released on $10,000 bail

Mythili Sampathkumar
New York
Friday 25 May 2018 17:03 BST
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Mildred Newsome has been accused of sexual assault by a male cable repairman in Fayetteville, North Carolina
Mildred Newsome has been accused of sexual assault by a male cable repairman in Fayetteville, North Carolina

A North Carolina woman has been arrested after being accused of sexual assault by a cable repairman.

Police said the man, who remains unidentified, accused 47-year-old Mildred Newsome of allegedly made “unwanted sexual advances” towards him while he was in her Fayetteville, North Carolina, apartment on a service call.

Ms Newsom was arrested this week after an investigation into the incident in April. The nursing home and rehabilitation centre employee has been released on $10,000 bond. Records showe that she has been charged with two felony counts of a second-degree forcible sex offence and one misdemeanour count of sexual battery.

The victim said he was almost finished with the cable repairs when Ms Newsome allegedly his hand on her breast “by force”. The arrest warrant stated she had allegedly done so for "sexual arousal and sexual gratification”.

Sergeant Sean Strepay of the Fayetteville Police Department told the Charlotte Observer newspaper that the victim said he had tried to pull his hand away and said “no” but that Ms Newsome allegedly “continued” despite the victim’s protests and forced him to perform oral sex.

According to Mr Strepay, Ms Newsome allegedly told the victim that if he reported the incident to police she would “turn the story on him” and claim the cable technician was actually the aggressor.

“We have emphasised that he did report it immediately after the incident. He went back to [his office] and called us,” Mr Strepay said.

Mr Strepay cautioned those who think only women can be victims of sex crimes, pointing to a number of comments on social media bout the case. “That’s not true,” he noted.

“A lot of people are of the mind that a man cannot be sexually assaulted or could have done something to stop it….Put yourself in the victim’s shoes. It’s a traumatic experience...If he happens to be on social media and comes across those comments, it will be more traumatic,” he said.

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