Newbury & District bus driver Peter Clarke denies groping schoolgirl

A SCHOOL bus driver groped a female passenger, a jury has been told.

In the dock at Reading Crown Court was Peter Clarke, a veteran driver for Newbury & District bus company.

The 72-year-old, of Ball Hill, denies sexually touching the pupil when she did not consent on February 8 last year.

Matthew Knight, opening the prosecution case on Thursday, July 18, said the girl had been walking to catch a school bus when Mr Clarke approached her and pointed out that she had absent-mindedly walked past it.

He then patted her buttock three times, giving a lingering squeeze the third time, the court heard.

Mr Knight said she was texting her friend, who had caught another bus, to ask if she had seen what happened, when the friend texted her, asking: “Did your bus driver just touch your a***?”

The girl went home and told her mother what had happened and the police were alerted.

Mr Clarke attended a voluntary police interview and, in a prepared statement, denied any sexual touching.

Jurors were shown a blurry CCTV clip of the incident.

Giving evidence, the girl told the jury of 11 men and one woman: “I was quite shocked; it hadn’t quite clicked what had just happened - I almost froze.

“In my head I was running through what just happened…like, ‘Oh my God.’”

Describing the incident, she said: “He was touching me inappropriately, touching my bottom three times and then having a grip on it.

“He invaded my personal space.”

Mr Knight said: “The Crown say this is inherently sexual touching and you may want to consider the age of the complainant, who was 16 at the time.

“She didn’t consent to the touching and Mr Clarke didn’t reasonably believe she consented to that touching.

“The Crown’s case will be there was intentional touching - not a ‘falling into’ or brushing past her but deliberate touching, the nature of which was sexual.”

He added: “Mr Clarke has denied the allegation.

“The defence position will be that he didn’t touch the complainant in a sexual way; that he had no sexual motive when touching her.

“He doesn’t accept he touched her bottom - no, he touched her arm.

“That’s the matter for you to decide on.”

The trial, expected to finish early next week, continues.