A Casey man who appeared drunk when he allegedly kissed and groped females in a string of incidents on buses and near bus stops had a long-standing problem with alcohol, a court has been told.
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Nqobile Marshal Hadebe, 24, was charged with several acts of indecency after police arrested him over allegations he inappropriately touched the women and girls in public in November and December.
Hadebe, who pleaded not guilty and denied committing the offences, appeared via audiovisual link for a bail application in the ACT Magistrates Court on Wednesday.
Court documents stated a woman had turned around to see a man, who police allege was Hadebe, when she felt a hand tap her shoulder then touch her breast as she sat on a bus travelling along Commonwealth Avenue on November 1.
In a separate incident, Hadebe had allegedly slurred his speech and appeared to be affected by drugs or alcohol when he spoke to a woman, 18, at a bus stop in Casey on November 10.
Once they were on the bus, he had approached the woman again and, appearing unsteady on his feet, had allegedly fallen on top of the woman and the female next to her, touching the complainant's upper thigh as he tried to stand up.
Police will also allege a girl who claimed a man who stroked her arm, nudged her leg and tried to touch her bottom on a bus in Gungahlin on December 2 said he had smelled of alcohol.
The man's alleged to have stated to the girl and her friends: " I have killed 26 people in the army. If you mess with me I will kill you and every white person on the bus."
In another incident, two girls were sitting near a bus stop in Gungahlin when Hadebe allegedly walked up and began to speak with them on December 8.
He then allegedly kissed one of the girls on the hand, making her cry, and later kissed the other teenager on the cheek before she pulled away.
The man allegedly walked off and a male friend of the pair took a photo of the accused on his mobile phone and later showed it to police when they reported the incident.
Court documents said the teenagers noticed the man appeared intoxicated and had stumbled as he boarded a bus soon after he spoke with them.
Police arrested Hadebe that afternoon.
In an interview with officers, Hadebe admitted he was the man in CCTV footage of the alleged incidents but denied he'd touched anyone inappropriately.
Hadebe's defence lawyer said in court he could live with his family if he was granted bail, noting his grandmother was "a strict disciplinarian" and his family members were willing to report him to police if he breached any bail conditions.
But prosecutor Soraya Saikal argued the accused had a long-standing problem with alcohol, which included a prior allegation of high-range drink driving, and required intensive rehabilitation.
Magistrate Karen Fryar said it must be "an absolute tragedy" for the man's family to see him in his current situation but said it would take more than a court order he not consume alcohol for him to rehabilitate.
Ms Fryar noted there were also matters "in relation to his attitudes to women" which should be dealt with but said that was "a separate issue".
She refused bail. Hadebe was remanded in custody until his matter returns to court.
