A woman accused of sexually assaulting two 13-year-old girls at an Arsenal Women’s Super League match claims she was just ‘overly friendly’, a court heard.
Morgan Carty, 37, appeared at Snaresbrook Crown Court charged with intentionally touching two teenagers at the Emirates stadium in a way that was sexual and without consent.
The offences allegedly took place when Arsenal played Aston Villa on October 15 in 2023.
CCTV footage played in court shows Carty, wearing a long coat and dark sunglasses get up from her seat midway through the first half, leaving her male companion she had arrived with.
She climbed over two rows of seats to place herself next to the two young girls before repeatedly leaning over them.
Louise McCloskey, defending, said: ‘Ms Carty will enter not guilty pleas, the defence case is that any touching was accidental and certainly not sexual, the CCTV is very high quality, TV quality.
‘It’s common ground that my client moved seats and that she went and sat next to the two girls and that she was in drink.
‘She was invading their personal space; she was being over-friendly and over-familiar.’
Carty’s plea and trial preparation hearing was adjourned until January 16 while her trial date was set for April 27, 2026.
Carty, of Pepys Road, Wimbledon, faces two charges of sexual assault on a female, and is on bail provided she does not contact either of the girls.
The Gunners scored two late goals in stoppage time in the game to beat the Villans 2-1.