Suspended sentence for man who groped fellow gym user

By Declan Brennan

A wheelchair user who groped a fellow gym user after she agreed to help him carry his gear into the changing room has received a suspended prison sentence.

Jack Cole (28) pulled the woman onto his lap and kissed her on the lips. When she stood up to leave, he put his hand between her mid thighs and grabbed her gym shorts at the back.

Imposing sentence on Thursday, Judge Orla Crowe said that all of this was unwanted behaviour and the woman was utterly blameless. She said that while the incident was short-lived, it caused alarm and upset to a person who was only trying to help.

Noting his genuine remorse and the early plea of guilty Judge Crowe suspended a prison term of nine months in full on condition that Cole keep the peace and be of good behaviour.

In a letter to the court, Cole said that he “misconstrued” the situation but said the woman “did nothing wrong” and “did not send any mixed signals”.

Cole of Cromlech Fields, Ballybrack, Dublin pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to intentionally engaging in offensive conduct of a sexual nature on September 14, 2024.

Maddy Grant BL, prosecuting, told the court that at around 6pm that day Cole approached the woman in the car park of the gym. She recognised him as a gym member but didn’t know him.

Cole asked her to help him bring his gym gear into the gym. She agreed and he handed her a gym mat and a can of energy drink.

He asked her about her height, and when she told him, he said he didn’t believe her and said, “Let’s go back to back”. He later told her she had “really nice legs and a fine figure”.

The court heard she laughed off both these comments “nervously”. When they got inside the gym, Cole asked the woman to bring the items into the “disabled changing bathroom”, counsel said.

Once in there, he asked her for a hug, and she gave him one. Cole then told her, “I’m going to close this door as it looks a bit weird”, and he closed and locked the door.

The woman felt uncomfortable as Cole was positioned between her and the door. She told Cole she needed to leave and he asked for a hug goodbye.

It was as she was giving this hug that he pulled her onto his lap and kissed her and touched her. After touching her shorts from behind, the woman told him, “Can you stop? I need to go”, and she found the door and left the room.

The woman drove home and was crying and upset. Her parents drove her back to the gym and made a report to the gym manager, who contacted the gardai.

Justin McQuade BL, defending, said that his client was extremely remorseful. He said when a friend of the victim confronted him on the day of the offence, Cole apologised there and then and agreed to the friend recording an apology for the victim.

Counsel said his client suffered life-altering injuries as a teenager. He said he does work with the spinal injuries community and is also engaged with wheelchair basketball in Ireland.

Mr McQuade said Cole’s behaviour on the day was creepy but his client has taken full responsibility for it. He said Cole accepts the victim was a decent, kind human being and that he took advantage of that.