A cheerleading coach bought two 14-year-olds a bottle of
vodka before driving them to Mission Bay where he sexually
abused one of them in the back seat of his car, a court has
heard.
Nikola Michael Marinovich has denied two charges of unlawful
sexual connection with a 14 and 15-year-old.
Marinovich - the former executive director of Total
Cheerleading - is on trial at the Auckland District Court
where a young woman gave evidence about a night she spent
with him when she was a teenager.
The woman, now in her 20s, was a member of Marinovich's
cheerleading squad when she was 14-years-old, and told the
court she was flattered by the attention from the older man
who was at least 18.
The courtroom was closed to members of the public as she
spoke of Marinovich sending her "inappropriate'' text
messages about her body.
She said she spent some time alone with Marinovich at his
house in west Auckland, and on at least two occasions sat on
his lap.
"I just wasn't attracted to him like that. It did make me
feel good but I wasn't sure it was ok.''
She said on one occasion she asked her parents to drop her at
a party in west Auckland with her friend.
But instead of going to the party, she and her friend walked
up the road to the dairy where they were picked up by
Marinovich in his car.
Crown prosecutor Tiffany Robertson asked why she didn't tell
her parents she was going out with Marinovich.
"Because they would never let me go.''
She said Marinovich bought them a bottle of feijoa vodka
which she and her friend drank in the back of the car while
parked at Mission Bay.
The woman said she was drunk but her friend was "really,
really drunk'' when the alleged offending occurred.
Ms Robertson asked the woman if she had done anything to help
her friend.
The woman broke down in tears and said she did "nothing''.
"I was really drunk myself ... I don't know why I didn't do
anything, I just got there and went along with it.''
Marinovich dropped the two girls off at her house and she
recalled telling her mother that her friend drank too much at
the party.
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