A man ‘grabbed’ and sexually assaulted a paramedic who came to his aid in Woking.

The South East Coast Ambulance Service (SECAmb) were called to an address where an unconscious man needed help in June 2022. When paramedics arrived they found Christian Callaghan, 35, unresponsive inside the address. He moved in and out of consciousness as they carried him to the ambulance where basic observations were attempted.

Callaghan then grabbed the paramedic and sexually assaulted her. She told him firmly to stop and that his actions were not acceptable, but he then became verbally abusive.

Sergeant Daryl Budd was able to identify Callaghan from the ambulance’s CCTV footage, and he was arrested and charged with sexual assault.

Callaghan was sentenced to 42 weeks’ imprisonment suspended for two years on Monday, February 26 at Guildford Crown Court. He has also been placed under a 60-day curfew from 9pm-7am, and will be subject to notification requirements.

SECAmb security manager, Dave Monk, said: “We welcome the sentencing of this individual. Any abuse of our staff is completely unacceptable and we will continue to do everything we can to ensure anyone who acts in such a way is held accountable for their actions. Such behaviour can have a long-term effect on victims and our colleagues deserve to work without the fear of abuse or violence.”