As the trial of a man accused of seven counts of sexual assault began in Victoria on Monday, women took to the stand and described feeling something splash on them as they walked through the city center and noticed their tights were torn to shreds.

Two women and a teenager testified Monday morning at the trial of Sean James O’Reilly, who pleaded not guilty to seven counts of sexual assault relating to incidents that occurred between November 17, 2022 and December 29, 2022.

In his opening statement, Crown Prosecutor Mark Feldthusen said the court would hear seven women were splashed with hot liquid on their legs in six separate incidents in Victoria city centre. She said the liquid caused her nylons to break down, revealing some of the skin underneath.

Feldthusen said some women feel a burning or itching sensation that disappears fairly quickly and does not cause permanent injury.

Feldthusen said what was at stake at the hearing was to prove that O’Reilly was responsible for the events and to establish that the attacks were sexual in nature.

The Crown plans to call seven women, whose identities are protected by a publication ban, and three police officers who investigated the incidents as witnesses.

The first woman to testify described feeling fluid on the back of her legs and a “strong tingling” sensation as she walked south on Douglas Street near View Street after leaving work on Nov. 17, 2022.

“It felt like I was being sprayed from a spray bottle or water gun, like wet droplets were hitting the back of my legs,” she said.

The woman testified that when she touched the back of her legs to see if they were wet, her hands were covered in a sticky, black residue.

He realized his tights were torn. She said small holes appeared in the tights and the material became more transparent, while her legs were black from the residue.

The tingling and burning sensations increased, and when she couldn’t wash her legs with paper towels and water, she ran to her partner’s apartment to take a shower.

He stated that after cleaning the residue from his legs, the burning sensation stopped.

A young person stated that he had a similar experience on November 23, 2022. He said he felt a splash of water and didn’t know what it was. Her legs began to tingle and her tights began to fall apart.

She was in shock and called a friend shortly after to talk about the incident. Her friend told her mother about the situation, and she contacted the girl’s father. When he got home, his father called the police.

Those who testified Monday morning said they weren’t sure what had happened to them.

The first woman cross-examined said she was initially unsure whether the incident was serious enough to be reported to the police.

“I felt like maybe I didn’t have enough knowledge for that. … I wasn’t sure if someone had sprayed me,” he said.

He said he spoke to police after seeing a news report about similar incidents downtown. Noticing that this appeared to be a recurring incident, he said he decided it was worth reporting.

No evidence was given Monday as to what the liquid in question was.

The hearing continues on Tuesday.

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