Seedy chef admits sexual assault on teenager in bar
Creep warned he faces jail if he fails to carry out court order
A chef who carried out an attack on a teenager at a Paisley pub he worked in has been put on the Sex Offenders’ Register.
Martin Burke, 54, groped the woman, who can’t be named for legal reasons, at the Abbey Inn, where he was head chef.
Burke pounced on the woman, who is now 20 but was 19 at the time, at the Barrhead Road bar on July 16 last year.
He went on trial at Paisley Sheriff Court in May facing a single charge under Section 3 of the Sexual Offences (Scotland) Act 2009.
He denied sexually assaulting the woman by placing his hands under her clothing against her will, touching her breasts and touching her groin area over her trousers.
After the woman gave evidence, Burke pleaded guilty to the charge against him after prosecutors deleted claims he touched her groin area.
Sheriff Tom McCartney called for Burke to be assessed by social workers and specialist professionals who work with sex offenders to assess his risk of future offending ahead of sentencing.
Sentencing was adjourned until yesterday for that to be done.
When Burke returned to the dock he faced a cry of “beast” from the public gallery from a man who was ejected by a police officer.
Defence solicitor Jonathan Manson said Burke, of Kirkintilloch, accepted he had sexually assaulted the 19-yearold but had done so unwittingly and had already been punished over the crime because he had lost his job.
Mr Manson explained: “He has now lost his employment as a result. He was employed as a head chef.
“He is no longer employed and is unsure whether it will be easy to get employment, given the conviction.
“He thought the complainer was consenting. She clearly was not. It wasn’t his intention to sexually assault this lady – but he did so as she was not consenting.”
Sheriff Tom McCartney could have jailed Burke for as long as 12 months for the offence but spared him prison.
Instead, he was placed on a Community Payback Order (CPO) that requires him to be supervised by social workers for 18 months and carry out 200 hours of unpaid work in six months.
Sheriff McCartney said: “The offence here is one of assault. It is a sexual assault and I heard evidence from the victim of this as to what happened. “It is a serious matter. “I’m going to deal with this by a sentence which is a direct alternative to custody.”
He also warned Burke that he could still be jailed over the case if he breached the CPO, adding: “As this is a direct alternative to prison, it is likely the alternative would very possibly be the imposition of a prison sentence.”
Burke was also placed on the Sex Offenders’ Register for 18 months, meaning he has to notify police of all his bank cards and any time he changes address within three days of doing so.
The offence is a sexual assault. It is a serious matter Sheriff Tom McCartney