Bar security footage helps clear Hong Kong rugby player of molestation charge

A Hong Kong professional rugby player has been acquitted of molesting a woman at a bar after a magistrate ruled the athlete had touched her buttocks by accident.

But Faizal Solomona Penesa, 34, admitted a lesser offence of common assault and another charge of criminal damage, and was ordered by Magistrate Gary Chu Man-hon on Thursday to pay HK$12,000 (US$1,530) in fines.

Security footage played in court showed Solomona’s hand on the complainant’s waist at Bobby’s Rabble on Wyndham Street on the night of September 28, 2025.

Police were alerted after the complainant splashed a drink at him and screamed. Officers took Solomona to a police station, where he became emotional and kicked a door bolt in a temporary holding area, causing it to bend.

His lawyer told the court that Solomona grew frustrated when he learned that the woman, who allegedly also assaulted him, was not arrested.

In his verdict, Chu said that he found “multiple discrepancies and stark contrast” between the bar’s security camera footage and the complainant’s testimony.