Luke Pomersbach arrested for allegedly molesting a US woman, gets interim bail
Luke Pomersbach, the Royal Challengers Bangalore player who was arrested today for allegedly molesting a woman from the US and allegedly beating up her boyfriend at Delhi five-star hotel, has received interim bail till tomorrow with a surety of Rs 20,000.
- NDTVSports
- Updated: May 18, 2012 06:57 PM IST
Luke Pomersbach, the Royal Challengers Bangalore player who was arrested today for allegedly molesting a woman from the US and allegedly beating up her boyfriend at Delhi five-star hotel, has received interim bail till tomorrow with a surety of Rs 20,000.
Before leaving the Patiala House court, he told reporters that he is "disappointed with the false charges." The judge has asked for CCTV footage from the hotel where the incident reportedly happened after the Delhi Daredevils-Royal Challengers Bangalore match on Thursday evening.
The Australian cricketer had also fainted for a few seconds in the court-room.
A case has been registered against the 27-year-old Australian player under IPC sections 354 (outraging modesty of woman), 323 (hurt), 454 (lurking house trespass) and 511 (Punishment for attempting to commit offences punishable with imprisonment for life or other imprisonment). He was taken to the Ram Manohar Lohia hospital in Delhi for medical test.
Zohal Hameed, a US national, was allegedly molested by Pomersbach when they were partying in her room at the hotel. She said, "I am not sure about his full name. But he tagged along with us after the party and (insisted) that we have few drinks with him. He told something to my fiance Sahil Peerzada which I did not like".
The victim was admitted to the nearby Primus hospital this morning. Executive Director of the hospital Dr DK Baluja said the victim was bleeding from his left ear when he was brought to the hospital this morning. He said, "Since the patient complained of delusion, a CT scan was done immediately and the report said that there was no deep head injury". He has been shifted to the ICU and will be under observation for the next 24 hours.
Owner of the Royal Challengers Bangalore Vijay Mallya said Pomersbach will not be playing in the remaining games of the IPL. In a statement issued by the IPL team, it said, "The Royal Challengers Bangalore regrets the incident involving Luke Pomersbach. We will ensure full co-operation with the concerned authorities so that a fair investigation takes place and the issue is disposed off in accordance with law. Pending disposal of this matter Luke Pomersbach will not take the field for The Royal Challengers Bangalore".
Meanwhile IPL Chairman Rajiv Shukla said the IPL had nothing to with this because the incident did not take place in any party organised by it. "Let the law take its course," he said. "We have done away with official parties. So if some individual player does something in his individual capacity in a hotel, IPL has nothing to do with it," Shukla added.
However, BJP MP and former cricketer Kirti Azad alleged that the IPL "has given rise to many unsavoury things. Today's attempt to rape is one such". He said foreign players were taking advantage of the conditions in India.
The incident comes only a day after Kolkata Knight Riders owner Shah Rukh Khan was caught in a scuffle with MCA officials at Mumbai's Wankhede stadium on Wednesday night after a match between his team and the Mumbai Indians. The MCA has alleged that the actor had arrived drunk at the stadium after the match and abused and manhandled staff there. The actor has vehemently denied this and said that he was provoked by the highhanded and abusive behaviour of stadium officials.
This also comes very soon after the cash-rich T-20 tournament was rocked by a sting operation conducted by a TV news channel, in which five IPL players were purportedly caught on camera indulging in spot-fixing and other "murky deals." A BCCI inquiry into that will begin today. Ravi Sawani, who heads the BCCI's anti-corruption unit will conduct the inquiry.
The five accused players have been suspended pending the inquiry report.