A HEALTH care assistant sexually groped two women colleagues while working with them and Stroud General Hospital, it was alleged at Gloucester Crown Court today.

Danisa Gumeda, 45, took advantage of friendly hugs with the women to molest them, a jury was told.

But Gumeda, of Parkend Road, Gloucester, denies doing anything wrong and says the women are mistaken or misinterpreted his actions.

He has denied two charges of sexually assaulting one of the women on October 23, 2015 and two further charges of sexual assaults on the other woman between May 31, and October 1, 2015.

Prosecutor Nicolas Gerasimidis told the jury that both Gumeda and the two women were agency workers who were doing shifts at Stroud Hospital during the summer of 2015.

"We say that on four occasions he overstepped the boundaries of his working relationships with these ladies," said the barrister.

"He took advantage of them by touching them in inappropriate ways on inappropriate parts of their bodies."

On October 23, he said, the first woman was working with him and was grateful that he agreed to swap shifts with her.

She gave him a hug.

"He held on for too long," Mr Gerasimidis said. "She felt uncomfortable.

"Later on that morning she was working with him again with a particular patient when she found herself effectively trapped by him.

"What he did was to come from behind her.

"He put his hands up her clothing, first in an upwards direction but then downwards below her waistband and into the front of her and touched her vaginal area.

"At that point her line manager came into the room. She saw a situation which she found unfamiliar. They were in parts of the room where they should not have been. The complainant shot her a glance and tried to make it clear she was unhappy with what was going on and felt compromised.

The victim went home at 5.15pm that day. She was shocked about what had happened. She complained about it the next day.

"During their investigation the police came across a second complainant. She also spoke about something which happened on two occasions between her and the defendant. A similar story emerged.

"These two women did not know each other did not know of each other's complaints. We say it is an unlikely coincidence that two people would make similar complaints against the same person not knowing what each other had said.

"She said that in the summer of 2015 she knew the defendant as a colleague. The first incident was a hug that took place. She described how she, as a person, is generally effusive and hugs people.

"She says she hugged the defendant but he held onto her and kissed her on the lips. That was not acceptable to her. She complained straight away and he was warned of any such contact with her.

"But about a month later she was working with him again when he sought to put his hands under her clothing and managed to get as far as the bottom of her breasts. It was clear his intentions were to touch her breasts. He got within a very close margin of managing to grope them fully when she moved.

"We say here is a man who overstepped the boundaries of his professional and colleague relationships in ways which are shocking, unacceptable and unwelcome and which effectively are criminal offences.

"When he was interviewed by the police he denied it and said none of these allegations are true. He says any contact between him and the women either came from them or there was some sort of mistake or misinterpretation on their part. "

The trial continues.