By FARRAH JOHNSON

Tribune Staff Reporter

fjohnson@tribunemedia.net

A PROSECUTOR has requested the maximum penalty for a man who masturbated in front of a woman with whom he shared a cell at a local police station last week.

Ryan Bodie, 32, was yesterday charged with the indecent assault of a 25-year-old woman after he threatened to rape and give her AIDS while the two were detained in a holding cell at the East Street South Police Station on October 21.

He pleaded guilty during his arraignment before Magistrate Kendra Kelly and was remanded into custody for a psychiatric evaluation.

The court was told that Bodie was arrested and taken to the East Street station after he threatened to kill his father and caused $260 worth of damage to the man’s vehicle earlier that morning.

While there, he was placed in a cell with the female complainant who was detained hours before for an unrelated matter.

Prosecutor Vernon Pyfrom said the woman told police she was initially searched and placed in a holding cell by herself where she fell asleep. She said sometime later, she was awakened by the cell door opening and officers placing a man inside with her.

Sgt Pyfrom said the woman was lying on a cement bench in the cell when she observed Bodie, who was lying down on the floor in front of the cell door, take out his penis and begin to masturbate before falling asleep.

The court was told Bodie later woke up, got up off the floor and sat down on the bench next to the woman, where he then took his genitals out and started to masturbate a second time while touching her hand.

Sgt Pyfrom said this time, the woman jumped up and ran to the cell door and shouted for officers, but no one came. He said while she was shouting, Bodie told her he would rape her and give her AIDS. The officer said the accused then fully exposed himself and began “swinging his penis back and forth.”

While the complainant continued screaming for assistance, Bodie threatened to gag her with his boxer briefs which appeared to have faeces on them, the court was told. This prompted the woman to scream even louder and officers “eventually” came and removed Bodie from the cell. After the woman requested police action, he was interviewed and owned up to the offence.

Sgt Pyfrom said when Bodie was questioned, he said the officers placed him in a cell with a woman and he was “horny”. The court was told that Bodie admitted asking the woman if she “wanted d---” before poking her on her arm with one of his fingers. However, he denied threatening to rape the woman and insisted he did not have AIDS.

Yesterday, the prosecution asked the magistrate to impose the maximum three-year prison sentence on Bodie as his actions were “heinous, mentally disturbing” and bound to cause “long lasting implications” for the complainant.

For his part, Bodie blamed the indecent assault on police officers, who he claimed were the ones at fault.

“It was the mistake of the police,” he said. “They put her in the cell with me and I jacked off in front of her.”

After the summary of the prosecution’s facts, Magistrate Kelly said she had taken note of Bodie’s “strange behaviour” and random outbursts during the hearing. She said the way he behaved in court and the actions he was described as committing suggested that he may not be mentally competent.

As a result, she remanded him into custody so he could be evaluated by professionals at the Sandilands Rehabilitation Centre (SRC) before passing her sentence.

Bodie returns to court December 10 when Magistrate Kelly will deliver her ruling.