Overview

• On May 29, defence counsel highlighted inconsistencies between the staffer’s May 2021 police statement and his later body-cam retracing testimony
• Video footage showed the alleged victim walking through The Domain, descending steep stairs and stopping at a café near Sydney Eye Hospital the morning after the 2015 incident
• The complainant testified that Ward offered him accommodation to avoid a costly taxi fare before groping and digitally assaulting him despite repeated refusals
• The trial also covers separate charges that Ward indecently assaulted an 18-year-old man at a Nowra networking event in 2013 by unwanted touching
• Ward, who has represented Kiama since 2011 and became an independent in 2023, denies all five charges as the three- to four-week trial continues under Judge Kara Shead