Arslan Cheema pleads guilty to sexual assault in Dublin

This report is a localnews.ie summary based on public court reporting and records; sources are listed below.

Arslan Cheema pleaded guilty to one count of sexual assault. The proceedings were reported on 17 October 2024. The assault took place in a car outside student accommodation in Dublin city centre on 4 April 2021.

At a hearing at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court on 17 October 2024, the court heard that the woman was 19 at the time of the assault and had been on first-name terms with Cheema, from whom she regularly ordered takeaways.

The woman told gardaí that Cheema placed her hand on his penis and tried to kiss her. She said he later grabbed her face and tried to kiss her; she told him to get off her and left the car. CCTV showed her leaving the car looking upset and slamming the door.

Cheema gave gardaí a different account, saying they were friendly and he felt they could talk about sexual matters. He said he was sorry if he had hurt her, but believed he had done nothing she was unhappy with and that she had been smiling and joking. Detective Garda Conor Mackey agreed with defence counsel that Cheema was downplaying the incident, but noted his guilty plea and the possibility of belated recognition.

Judge Orla Crowe adjourned the matter until 4 November 2024 to hear the remaining defence mitigation and impose sentence.

This report covers an earlier stage of the case. Later developments are not reported here.