Woman 'bashed unconscious', court told

A woman was bashed against a concrete wall, knocking her unconscious, strangled twice, and sexually violated in a series of assaults by Richard John Keepa, Christchurch District Court was told today.

Crown prosecutor Claire Boshier alleged the woman ran from the man's house, naked from the waist down after the assault, and tried to text for help when her cellphone battery died.

She ran about a kilometre from the man's Christchurch house to a friend's house to get help.

Keepa told the police he had no memory of the incident, Miss Boshier said.

But he later wrote letters to the woman acknowledging that he had anger issues and "wanted to hug her, and not around the neck, either".

Keepa has pleaded not guilty to 12 charges, including wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm to the woman threatening to kill her, unlawful detention with intent to have sex, and sexual violation.

The trial before Judge Jane Farish is set down for four days.

Miss Boshier told the jury there was an argument beteen Keepa and the woman as they were being driven home after a night out drinking.

Witnesses would say they saw Keepa shove the woman head-first into a concrete fence.

"She remembers waking up in hospital," said the prosecutor. The woman had been taken to hospital by ambulance, unconscious and bleeding from a cut to her nose. She had swelling on her forehead but no broken bones in her face.

On another occasion, she would say that Keepa strangled her unconscious when she refused to have sex with him. She wore high necked tops afterwards, but friends still saw the red marks on her neck.

The crown alleges he threatened one of her friends with a knife in another incident.

In the final incident, which took place at Keepa's home, he again asked her for sex and began talking in riddles after she refused.

He said he would kill her, and refused to let her leave.

He punched her in the nose which bled. He had then touched her with his hand and then licked the blood off his fingers, Miss Boshier said.

"He threatened her with a pair of bolt cutters and asked how she would like it if he cut all her fingers off."

He then undressed and forced the woman to perform oral sex before undressing and sexually assaulting her further.

The woman would say he then put her in a headlock, choking her while he forced two fingers into her nostrils.

She seized the chance to grab her handbag and some of her clothes and ran from the house.

Proceeding

- NZPA