Alan Jones complainant's ex quizzed over 'look after you' text

Alan Jones trial hears from ex-girlfriend of complainant over message In short: Broadcaster Alan Jones's defence team have cross-examined the ex-girlfriend of one of his alleged victims over their contact after the man made a complaint to police. The woman agreed one message could look like a financial promise for coming forward in to support him. The man, who cannot legally be named, was a promising young athlete at the time police allege Mr Jones indecently assaulted him. A woman who said her ex-boyfriend told her Alan Jones "inappropriately" touched him as a teenager has accepted a message he sent 20 years later could look like a financial promise for coming forward, but denied interpreting it that way. The 85-year-old broadcaster is facing a local court trial in Sydney after pleading not guilty to 20 counts of indecent assault and two counts of sexual touching relating to six male complainants between 2003 and 2020. Complainant J, a former young athlete, has accused Mr Jones of kissing him and touching him indecently on multiple occasions when he was 17 or 18 years old. The complainant, now in his 40s, alleged that during one overnight trip to Mr Jones's Fitzroy Falls property, the radio host touched him on the penis multiple times, kissed him on the mouth, and rubbed his genitals against his without his consent. Complainant J's girlfriend at the time told the trial on Thursday her boyfriend came over to her house after leaving Mr Jones's property and told her, "Alan Jones has touched me inappropriately" before also saying, "You cannot tell anyone about this." Complainant J's ex questioned over 'I'll look after you' The trial heard the woman reconnected with the complainant almost two decades later and the pair caught up on several occasions to have coffee and breakfast between 2023 and 2024. The woman said she provided a statement to police about Complainant J confiding in her years earlier after he officially reported his allegations, around two days following Mr Jones's arrest in 2024. Under cross-examination, the woman was questioned about messages Complainant J sent her after she gave her statement in 2024, which said, "that was something that could change my life for the better and you should feel very happy" and "once it's all over, I promise to look after you". "Did you understand him saying 'could change my life for the better' was him telling you there was a prospect of financial reward for him?" defence barrister Gabrielle Bashir SC asked "No," the ex-girlfriend answered "You understood that promise was a promise to look after you financially?" Ms Bashir suggested. "No," the woman replied. The woman did accept that she had "love hearted" the message and that it could be interpreted as a promise of financial support for backing up the complainant's case. "It does look like that, but it never crossed my mind," she said. "I know he didn't mean that ever, we had never spoken about it." As Ms Bashir began to question the woman about her ongoing sobriety and a $1,200 fine she received in 2024, Crown prosecutor Georgina Wright SC interjected and accused the defence of trying to "besmirch" the witness. "This financial motive is based on nothing, this is a backdoor to get before your honour, matters which are an attempt to intimidate the witness," Ms Wright said. During the fiery exchange, Ms Bashir asked the prosecution to withdraw the intimidation claim describing it as a "grave allegation", but Ms Wright refused. Judge Glenn Walsh allowed the line of questioning to continue and called for the "air to be cleared" between the two parties. The woman denied needing financial help from the complainant and strongly rejected suggestions from the defence that the conversation about inappropriate touching took place. The woman finished giving evidence to the judge-alone trial on Thursday morning.