A woman who touched two male shop workers on the buttocks has been placed on the sex offenders register.
Gail Stewart targeted two victims in an Inverness retail store – touching each on the bottom as they tried to serve her.
After being asked to leave the store and police arrived, Stewart struggled with officers as they tried to detain her.
Stewart, 34, appeared at Inverness Sheriff Court to admit two counts of sexual assault and one of resisting and struggling with officers.
Fiscal depute Martina Eastwood told the court that it was around 4.10pm on July 28 2023 when Stewart entered the retail premises with another female.
Stewart began shopping and requested assistance from one of the staff – touching him repeatedly on the arm and making him feel “uncomfortable”.
Woman ‘slapped’ worker’s ‘backside’
As the worker tried to help with her request she followed him and “slapped him on the backside” leaving her hand there for a moment before removing it.
The contact left the worker feeling uncomfortable and he walked away, alerting another staff member to what had happened.
The second worker then attempted to serve Stewart but she walked around behind him and passed her arm around his waist before touching him on the buttocks as well.
Stewart went to the tills and the store manager asked her to leave as “she was making staff feel uncomfortable”.
Woman detained over shop staff sex assaults
Police were contacted and traced Stewart outside the store, but when they charged her with the two sexual offences and tried to detain her she struggled with officers, before being handcuffed and placed in the van.
Sheriff Gary Aitken called for background reports and an assessment for the Moving Forward 2 Change programme for sexual offenders before passing sentence.
Solicitor Willie Young reserved his comments in mitigation until the next calling of the case.
Stewart, of Drumossie Road, Stratton, was placed on the sex offenders register with immediate effect, the eventual length of registration to be determined at sentencing.