A first aid trainer who sexually assaulted a young man in a Highland hotel bedroom has no memory of carrying out the attack, a court has been told.
Inverness Sheriff Court previously heard that the victim had been helping 42-year-old Derek Ross with first aid training he was doing in Boat Of Garten for a few days in January last year.
Ross said they had to share a room at the Boat Country Inn and they spent a couple of nights drinking in the bar.
However fiscal depute Victoria Silver told Sheriff Sara Matheson that the victim suspected that his drink may have been spiked by Ross, of Cairnsmore Road, Castle Douglas, Dumfries.
“He told the barman he thought his pint tasted odd and had it replaced,” Ms Silver said.
The prosecutor told the court that Ross had then made a comment that he recalled another occasion in a bar when he suspected his drink had been spiked and the teenager thought that this was also odd.
Victim woke up with man’s hand down his boxers
“The following day they again drank together and during the night, he woke up with an arm around him and a hand down his boxers, fondling his penis,” Ms Silver said.
She added that because the teenager was sleepy, he initially thought it was his girlfriend but quickly realised it was Derek Ross.
“He immediately exited the bed and left the room. He had no clothing on. He phoned his mother and was extremely upset. Police were called and when officers arrived, he was very distressed,” she said.
“He was of the view that he was drunker than he should have been considering what he had to drink earlier. Derek Ross was traced a short time later.”
Ross admitted carrying out a sexual act without consent in the Boat Country Inn on January 19 or 20 2022 and sentence had been deferred for a background report.
Defending, Graham Mann said his client “had no recollection of the incident. He has now lost his job”.
But Sheriff Gary Aitken, who sentenced Ross, told him: “There is a sinister aspect to this and your explanation that you have no recollection of it is difficult to accept.
“This had a significant impact on the individual involved.”
He sentenced Ross to carry out 200 hours of unpaid community work, placed him under social work supervision for two years and on the Sex Offender’s Register for the same period.
