Outcry as woman is groped at metal gig
AWOMAN has spoken of her anger after a drunk man at a Cardiff gig “put his hand down my trousers and grabbed my vagina”.
Louisa Yates said security guards told her there was nothing they could do after she reported the incident at Cardiff’s Motorpoint Arena and said it was not their policy to call police.
A spokeswoman for the arena has promised an investigation, saying the safety of customers is their priority.
The mum, from the Portland area of Dorset, was visiting Cardiff to see metal band Slayer, who played the venue on Monday, November 5.
She has waived her anonymity to speak about the incident, saying that she does not want her daughter ever to have to face a similar ordeal.
Ms Yates said: “My children need to be able to go out safely. To say I am not coming to Cardiff again is an understatement, I am never coming back to your country.”
She said the incident happened when the main act started.
She was around four people back from the front of the standing section and said there was a man directly behind her.
“This drunk guy kept leering over my shoulder, he was trying to grind against my thigh, so I tried to move so I had my back against him.
“Then he put his arm around me and slipped it down into my trousers and grabbed my vagina.
“I turned around and smacked my vape into his face and slapped him and screamed he was a pervert.
“I knew people might see me hitting him and wouldn’t understand what was going on but thought if I shouted they may understand.
“Then he skulked back into the crowd. Two guys in front of me had heard and tried to grab him but couldn’t.”
Ms Yates said she tried to stay, but said by seconds into the first song she had to leave and made her way to the back.
“Every guy near me who looked at me, I just started freaking out.”
She went to venue staff and said she immediately said: “I’ve been sexually assaulted, I want the police”.
“They called over a few other security personnel, a man and a woman, and they took me into the reception, near the ticket office.”
She tried to describe the man but was struggling, she said.
“I know he had blond hair and a goatee but that was all I could come up with.
“They said that unless I had a better description they couldn’t do anything as there were 10,000 people at the gig.
“All they could say was that they could let me watch the rest of the gig from the disabled viewing platform,” she said.
She said the staff told her they would co-operate if she called police, but it was not their policy to call police themselves on her behalf.
She said she did not have her phone and was too upset to make the call.
“This doesn’t happen at metal gigs. It’s one of the safest nights out for a woman.
“I know in 15 years that my daughter is going to want to go to a gig. Unless attitudes change, how do I keep her safe?”
She said the following morning she looked at her daughter and knew she had to report the incident.
She called the non-emergency number and was advised that the incident should have been reported the night before to increase the chances of gathering DNA from her fingernails or vape.
Her local police force said they will collect her underwear to run tests.
“I felt violated, I felt sick. I did everything I could to stay safe.
“I wore trousers, a top that didn’t flash my flesh, I didn’t drink and didn’t accept a drink from a stranger.”
She added: “We have got to change attitudes that this is not OK.”
She wants to see a change in policy from the Motorpoint Arena.
“They should call police automatically, even if that person then decides they cannot take it further.
“The first thing they should do is call 999. I am flabbergasted.”
A Motorpoint Arena Cardiff spokeswoman said: “The safety and wellbeing of all our patrons is paramount and we, as a live entertainment venue, have a policy that explicitly condemns any form of sexual assault or harassment.
“We operate a zero-tolerance approach to any incidents of this nature. We will investigate forthwith.”
Dorset Police said they had been notified of the incident. South Wales Police confirmed it was up to individual venues to determine their own policy.