Masseur jailed after offering woman 'surprise' at the end of her massage

THE 40-YEAR-OLD VICTIM HAD TREATED HERSELF TO A MASSAGE TO CELEBRATE A MILESTONE BIRTHDAY AND WAS LYING ON THE TABLE WITH THE TOWEL WRAPPED AROUND HER WHEN THE ASSAULT HAPPENED 18:34, 21 May

2025Updated 18:34, 21 May 2025 A masseur has been jailed for sexually assaulting a female client at the end of a massage session after he asked her if she would like a ‘surprise’. Lenon De

Souza Seara, a 35-year-old Brazilian native, was sentenced to two and a half years after he pleaded guilty to the sexual assault at the hotel spa where he was employed on July 4, 2024. The

victim, who cannot be named, had treated herself to a massage to celebrate a milestone birthday and said she agreed to the ‘surprise’ because she thought it might involve additional oils.

However, Cork Circuit Criminal Court heard she was stunned when the masseur performed oral sex on her. Sgt Brendan McBride told Judge Helen Boyle that the 40-year-old woman was lying on a

table with a towel wrapped around her, wearing disposable underwear, and her face was covered with a small towel. Sgt McBride said that the woman jumped from the massage table in shock after

the assault and quickly left the hotel. Article continues below A victim impact statement was previously read into evidence. In it, the woman said that she felt violated by what had taken

place in the hotel spa. She said: “I was flustered and vulnerable. For context, I was wearing disposable underpants, had a towel over my face, and my body was draped with a towel. So

effectively, I was otherwise completely naked. “When the incident occurred, I immediately sprang up and took the face towel off, basically leaving me even more exposed, shocked and

repeating, "No no no", I was naked and frazzled.” The woman left the spa immediately after the incident. The following day, she reported the matter to the police. Passing sentence,

Judge Boyle said that she had noted the submissions made by defence barrister Elaine Audley on behalf of her client. Ms Audley previously said that De Souza Seara took full responsibility

for his actions, which he said had arisen due to a gross misunderstanding on his part. Article continues below Judge Boyle said that the defendant was aware of the harm he had caused to the

woman who suffered a “violation of her body and privacy.” She said that he had accepted that his conduct was not only “unethical but a criminal offence.” She jailed De Souza Seara for three

years, suspending the last six months of the sentence. The sentence was backdated to when he entered custody on April 30. _FOR THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS AND STORIES FROM ACROSS THE GLOBE FROM

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