A MAN charged with sexually assaulting a girl almost half his age has been described as “predatory”, a jury heard.

Andrew Chapman, 29, of Peniel, is on trial at Swansea Crown Court charged with sexually assaulting the teenager in Carmarthenshire on September 21.

He denied the offence.

Chapman was accused of, while sitting in his vehicle, asking the teenager for a kiss and then reached out the window and touched her jacket around the chest area.

Addressing the jury, prosecutor Robin Rouch said: “Of all the places to park in Carmarthenshire, why did Mr Chapman choose to park on double yellow lines [where the alleged incident was said to have taken place].

“The reality is he can’t tell you why he really wanted to go there.

“It’s clear, it’s deliberate, and it’s intentional why he chose that exact spot.”

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Mr Rouch said the defendant had accepted that he found the complainant attractive and that he had called her over and initiated the conversation.

“He tried to chat her up,” Mr Rouch said.

“It’s clear that he wanted something to happen between them. Otherwise, as a 29-year-old married individual, what an earth was he doing calling her over?

Mr Rouch said that Chapman continued on with the conversation when the complainant said she was 16 years old, and that he was found to have a condom in his vehicle when he was arrested by police.

The prosecutor described Chapman’s evidence that he would not have contacted the girl on social media if she gave him her details, or would not have taken her anywhere if she accepted his offer to go to McDonald’s, as “nonsense”.

“We know [she] was close to the window at one point as she passed him her vape.

“In short, what he did was predatory. It was predatory behaviour.”

Mr Rouch acknowledged the unwanted touching was “fleeting”.

“The defendant denies that he touched the complainant at all,” said Hannah George, defending.

“He was asked about whether his DNA would be on the complainant’s jacket. He said ‘No, my DNA wouldn’t be there’ and he consented for his DNA to be taken.”

Both the prosecution and defence agreed that Chapman’s DNA was not found on the jacket.

“The account he gave you in evidence may have been unpalatable. He did not have to tell you that he found the complainant attractive.

“He described it as a nice chat.

“The complainant said in both her video recorded interview and also in her evidence that he didn’t physically touch her body.

“The contact was with her zip.”

Ms George said the complainant had said: “I didn’t feel like he was trying to grab me or anything.”

She continued: “She chose to give the defendant her vape and she chose to remain in conversation with him.

“The defence would say she did have an opportunity to leave.”

Chapman did not drive off after the alleged offence, instead remaining parked in the same place until he noticed being filmed by another person.

Ms George asked why he wouldn’t have driven off straight after the complainant left, as he would have been “like a dead man walking” when she reported the allegation.

The jury were sent out to begin their deliberations, and will return to consider their verdict on Friday.