A man who apologised to his victim online after raping her twice in a secluded Dunedin walkway has been found guilty.
The jury’s unanimous verdicts came after four hours’ deliberation at the conclusion of a three-day trial at the Dunedin District Court this week.
Nyal Heke (29) now faces a maximum penalty of 20 years’ imprisonment on each charge when he is sentenced next month.
The victim told the court she had gone to police shortly after the incident in the early hours of February 12 last year.
She knew it would be Heke’s word against hers, "so I wanted to nail him to get proof", she said.
On February 17, the woman sent the man a message on Facebook claiming she had not spoken to the police and simply wanted an apology.
"The least you owe me is an apology and let me know it won’t happen again. Please let me know you won’t do it again and it won’t happen to another girl," the victim wrote.
Heke responded: "I’m really sorry. I won’t ever do that again. You have my word ... you are safe."
Defence counsel Campbell Savage told the jury in his closing address that his client’s words were far from an acceptance of guilt.
"It’s hardly War and Peace," Mr Savage said.
"It’s like those apologies celebrities give on Twitter: ‘I’m sorry if I offended anyone’. This unsophisticated young man gives her exactly what she wants. Nothing more. It’s certainly not an admission."
Mr Savage portrayed the victim as a liar who had "manipulated the process" and interfered with the administration of justice.
But the jury disagreed.The victim told the court she had sat at the Exchange in tears after a fight with her ex-boyfriend following a night out.
Heke propositioned her, she declined, and walked home up High St.
The defendant walked around the back of the casino and followed her up the hill, continuing his advances.
When they had almost made it to Mornington he ushered her into a bushed walkway where he raped her twice.
Heke claimed it was consensual.
Mr Savage called it an "opportunistic sexual encounter in a non-traditional setting".
But the jury sided with the victim.
Crown prosecutor Craig Power called the woman an "honest, credible and reliable witness".
He said it was clear she was uncomfortable with Heke’s presence when she first met him, from a Snapchat message she sent referring to him as "creepy".
"She makes it clear to him, she’s not interested in going home with him and what does he do? He takes a short cut through the back of the casino and follows her up High St," Mr Power said.
"Later on up there, he leads her into an alleyway where it’s secluded, where people can’t see ... then he rapes her twice. She leaves. Further up the road he says ‘I’m sorry’."
The Facebook exchange was telling, he said.
"He admits raping her; he just doesn’t want to admit that now," Mr Power said.
Heke was remanded in custody pending sentencing.
