Captain drummed out of the Dragoons for cadet sex assault
Army officer groped victim, 25, then said: No one will believe you
A ‘PREDATORY’ Army Captain has been dismissed for sexually assaulting a young Sandhurst cadet hopeful by groping her at a formal military dinner in Scotland.
Captain Dominic Moore, of the Royal Scots Dragoon Guards, abused his position of power by groping the young woman and telling her she had ‘very kissable lips’ while he was supposed to be acting as her host.
A judge branded the highly respected officer ‘opportunistic’ after he ‘disregarded sexual boundaries’ to prey on her while he was drunk.
It was previously heard the 30-year-old stared at the 25-year-old while touching his genitals and even exposed himself.
The sexual assault happened at Leuchars Station military base in Fife.
Yesterday, a court martial heard his victim, who went on to join the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst in Berkshire, was subsequently ‘humiliated’ by Army bosses and colleagues who did not believe her claims.
The ‘nervous’ cadet was so tormented as a result she had to change platoon and take time off for stress, which she said put her Army career back a year.
Capt Moore’s barrister argued he should not be dismissed as he had ‘suffered shame’ and had already been ‘tremendously punished’ by having to wait to hear his fate.
But a judge ruled his abuse at the dinner hosted by the Royal Scots Dragoon Guards on April 1, 2019, was too serious not to dismiss him.
Assistant Judge Advocate General Alastair McGrigor said the victim had been visiting different regiments ahead of joining the Army and that Capt Moore was one of her hosts.
The judge said: ‘You flirted with her, directed sexualised behaviour at her and monopolised her. She did not encourage such behaviour from you.
‘On her way to the toilet she was intercepted by you and you told her she had “very kissable lips” and then put your hands on her hair and hip.
‘You tried to kiss her and she pushed you away. As the host, your behaviour was predatory.
‘She was a guest and she should have been protected from such behaviour. When she tried to report it you tried to deter her by saying she would never be believed.’
He added: ‘You are clearly a good and useful officer when undertaking regular duties but in a social context you acted opportunistically and completely disregarded sexual boundaries.’
Prosecutor William Peters summarised a statement from Capt Moore’s victim, who cannot be named for legal reasons.
Mr Peters said: ‘Afterwards she had difficulty in social settings, particularly with males who have been drinking.
‘It had an impact on her personal relationship and in short it affected her as she became nervous and intimidated. She had not been like that before.
‘The nature of the incident became known and she was humiliated by one of the directing staff and her colleagues operated on the basis that she made a false complaint.
‘This hurt her and left her vulnerable and alone. She had to move platoon because of that.
‘She also had to take time off for stress as a direct result of this incident. She is now back at Sandhurst but says “the incident has put my career in the Army back by a whole year. It has knocked my confidence”.’
Natasha Wong, QC, pleaded with the judge not to dismiss Capt Moore from the Army.
She said the officer has a university degree, speaks Arabic and has also learnt Farsi. Ms Wong argued such skills are ‘rare within the Armed Services’ and so he had ‘value that can’t be easily replaced’.
She said: ‘He’s a very accomplished officer with bags of talent and a grasp of northern Arabic.
‘He has got enough to make it through Special Forces selection process and the combination of that with the language skills make him an extremely valuable asset to the forces. He has significant value as an Arabist and if he was dismissed it would be a terrible loss to the country and to the service. The service is a small community, word gets around and the shame is already there stamped on his forehead and that’s not going away, but to terminate his life and career is an extreme reaction.’
Capt Moore denied sexual assault by touching but was convicted at a court martial in Catterick, Yorkshire. He claimed the abuse did not happen.
‘Your behaviour was predatory’