An Army officer has been disgraced for groping a colonel and kissing a female junior soldier on her lips, while grabbing her buttocks before a large group of officers.
Col Martin Toney married, aged 57. After 36 years of service, Toney was set to retire. However, Toney was stunned when a Catterick Garrison judge, North Yorkshire, handed down his sentence.
After his claim that nothing happened between him and his victim had been rejected by Top Brass’s jury, the Sandhurst graduate had asked to be released on probation.
The colonel had been accused by the former Major of giving her an unwanted kiss and ‘thorough feel of my bottom’ during an all ranks do in a hotel ski chalet in Dombås, Norway in 2012.
Married Col Martin Toney (pictured), aged 57, has had 36 years of service in the regulars. As he was about to retire, he stood stunned as a judge read his sentence.
After the Colonel had been cleared from a prior sex allegation, this woman (who cannot be identified for legal reasons) came forward.
Judge Edward Legard instructed him to sign as a sexual offender. This was in 2012 unacceptable.
Women are often at the forefront and leading edge of modern armed forces.
“If these armed forces want to be effective, they need to be inclusive. All people must have the ability to go to work, exercise, and participate in adventure training. They must also be allowed to attend social events with the assurance that they won’t be sexually assaulted.
“Your conduct that night was unprofessional. This also damaged the reputation of both the officer corps as well as the uniform section.
“You must wear the pips as your duty and job is to uphold high standards of behavior.
“Officers should not be paragons for virtue.” However, for someone at the top of their ranks to act in such a disgusting manner in front of others we consider it a disgrace.
According to the judge, the woman went to goodnight because it was “common courtesy” and that he wanted a kiss as well. They had never met.
He didn’t give her the usual peck on her cheek. Instead, he turned to kiss her lips before grabbing her buttocks.
“That assault was extended. It was brutal. It made her feel humiliated.
“You used a female subordinate to your advantage and she had given you common courtesy.”
His wife, Catterick Garrison (above), North Yorkshire, dragged him out of the hearing room by her hand.
“She was embarrassed by the possibility of being portrayed as the victim rather than the villain if she reports it.
“The offense continues to disturb her.”
In addition to being fired, the colonel was ordered to complete 120 hours of non-paid work during 18 months.
He was directed to comply with the notification rules of a sex-offender.
As the judge sentenced him, the Colonel stood rigidly and was then officially dismissed by the Army jury.
With his wife, he left Catterick Garrison North Yorkshire hearing with his hands in his pockets, dragging him along the corridor.
Defending barrister David Richards said earlier in mitigation that the colonel’s wife had been present throughout the court martial to support him.
The couple lives in Central London and he is a volunteer for the homeless.
Through his 38-years of exemplary conduct in both the Regular Army and Reserves, he had championed equality and diversity, especially in skiing.
He stated, “He’s nearing the end his service. The Army is his favorite. He has made it his entire life, work and play.
“To dismiss it would be an awful way to end the relationship, and add to the shameful loss of his good reputation that will result from what he’s done.”
According to the woman, the attack occurred during the last evening of Army Medical Service’s Nordic Ski Championships held in Norway in December 2012. A file photo showing ski equipment.
However, he will forever be called ‘The Groping Colon’ by all who look him up online.
Toney showed no emotion on Tuesday when he was found guilty of the assault during the final evening of the Army Medical Service’s Nordic Ski Championships in Norway in December 2012.
She had accused her ex-boss of molestation in a hotel function room in Dombas, when Col Toney was lieutenant colonel.
When asked about Col Toney’s memories, she replied: “I will forever remember the feeling of his hand upon my face.”
After an all-ranks dinner of Scandinavian food to close the camp, the incident occurred at a drink party.
According to the former major, she felt ‘completely sober” during festivities at a large chalet on the slopes. This was because Norwegian alcohol is very costly and few people drink because they are leaving the following day early.
She said she wanted to ‘politely leave’ after an hour. Col Toney was alone in a conference seat and the highest ranking officer, if not, the sole officer.
“So, out of politeness, I went to bid him goodbye. He said ‘Give me a kiss goodbye’. It was a complete flummox for me.
“We didn’t have the kind of relationship that I would kiss him goodbye.” This was made as a directive.
“I felt it was rude to not give you a cheek kiss so I bent down to say goodbye. Then he turned around and gave it a kiss.
“He placed his hand on mine and gently rubbed the bottom with some force. The touch was not fleeting. It was an intense feeling of my bottom.
It was a warm, but not overly thick knitted Nordic style cotton dress.
Col Toney was a lieutenant colonel when at the ski resort of Dombås, Norway, pictured (file photo)
Then she continued, “It felt as if it went on for an interminable time.” But it lasted 10 to 15 seconds. However, it was almost a full minute. He thoroughly touched my bottom.
His hand felt’moving quite leisurely’ to her.
She said, “I was just frozen during all of this.”
“I was so embarrassed. “I just wanted to leave the room quickly.
I felt embarrassed, confused, and degraded. I would normally tell someone to f*** off. But I can’t tell him to f*** off because he is a senior officer.
“He has decades of military experience. I am not an 18-year-old naive. This was not my first instance of inappropriate sexual contact with an officer, however it was my last.
Although she had previously experienced “messy high jinks”, this one was different because it took place in a room with more junior soldiers, which made the experience “a lot worse”.
She said, “My rank was not important because I could be treated as an object.”
The woman was still in a relationship, and she didn’t want anybody to suspect her of cheating on her boyfriend.
Col Toney was interviewed only under caution, in April of this year. Army police denied that anything was amiss.
During cross-examination, Mr Richards stated to the woman: “You knew that a lieutenant colonel couldn’t order you give him a kiss.”
She said, “It felt as if an order.” He believed he had the right to touch my skin because he was senior than me. This is exactly what happened.
Col Toney, who testified on Monday in evidence, denied that the incident at Trolltun Hotel had ever occurred.
His rank was that of a major officer in the Adventure Training Camp and he was also the Director of Cross Country Skiing, where the women was among 64 soldiers.
According to him, he attended the event 12 times and couldn’t recall any final dinners that ended on a “sour” note. He remembered them as being ‘jolly occasions.
It didn’t happen, he said. That isn’t something I’d do. She is making it up. “I didn’t do it.”
After the hearing, he declined to make any comment.