Prologue Journal

Hong Kong jury unanimously finds Swedish businessman guilty of raping former domestic worker

• prologu5
• 08/22/202408/22/2024

Hong Kong Free Press

A Hong Kong jury has unanimously found a Swedish businessman guilty of raping his former domestic worker.

Patrik Tobias Ekstrom, 35, was convicted on one count of rape and one count of non-consensual buggery on Thursday in a case relating to an incident in October 2022 involving his then-domestic worker, identified only as X. The seven-member jury reached a unanimous decision after deliberating for almost five hours.

Upon hearing the verdict, Ekstrom appeared calm.

X and Ekstrom both testified during the trail, which began with Jury selection last Tuesday, giving significantly different accounts of the incident and the events leading up to it.

X, who is from Nepal, told the court that when Ekstrom returned to his Shek O home late on October 27, 2022, he appeared drunk and forced her into his bedroom for sex. Ekstrom, however, testified that the two of them had had an intimate relationship which was initiated by X before the incident, and that the sex that night had been consensual.

See also: ‘Clear evidence’ domestic worker did not consent to sex with ex-employer accused of rape, Hong Kong court hears

The two also gave contrasting testimony about X’s financial situation. While it was agreed that Ekstrom had advanced four months of salary to X in July 2022 due to her financial circumstances, X said she had never requested help to repay a HK$45,000 loan. Ekstrom said she had asked him for assistance with the loan, including in the midst of sex.

During closing submissions on Wednesday, prosecutor Diane Crebbin called Ekstrom’s evidence inconsistent and not credible, while defence counsel Simon So said X was a liar.

‘Buy her silence’

The court heard earlier in the trial that Ekstrom came home late on October 27, 2022. Earlier that day, his wife, with whom he had been arguing, left for Japan with their three children.

Both X and a security guard on shift that night, who was summoned by the prosecution to testify, suggested that Ekstrom had been drunk. X said he had red eyes and was speaking in a different manner, while the security guard said his face was red and he was not walking in a straight line.

Ekstrom, however, testified that he had not been drinking. He said his eyes were red because he had been crying over the departure of his wife and children.

X told the court that Ekstrom made unwanted sexual advances to her that night and threatened to kill her. She said she feared for her life and felt she could not resist when Ekstrom, according to her, dragged her up the staircase and into his bedroom for sexual intercourse, anal sex and oral sex.

Ekstrom testified that it was X who went to his bedroom to comfort him and initiate sex, and that she had also twice in July 2022 initiated intimacy with him. He said that on both occasions, she walked into his bedroom while he was naked and watching erotic films. In the midst of oral sex both times, she asked for help with repaying a loan, he said.

The morning after the incident, X packed up her belongings and left the house. She filed a police report, and Ekstrom was arrested that night. Hours before his arrest, Ekstrom transferred HK$15,000 to her, an amount that the prosecution suggested was a bribe for X to “buy her silence” but which the defendant said was a “gesture of goodwill.”

A medical examination of X following the rape found no recent external injuries, including on her private parts. The defence argued that this was evidence that there was no forceful sex that night as both parties were cooperative.

Additional reporting Hans Tse

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https://hongkongfp.com/2024/08/22/hong-kong-jury-unanimously-finds-swedish-businessman-guilty-of-raping-former-domestic-worker/