Woman invited into subway driver’s cockpit says he ‘sexually assaulted her while riding’

The young woman says she was “really scared” when Nathaniel Cummings-Stewart invited her into the cockpit of the Jubilee Line train, where she claims he touched her and made salacious comments

A subway driver invited a female passenger into the cockpit of a train and sexually harassed her during the ride, a court has heard.

Nathaniel Cummings-Stewart, 47, is said to have told the young woman to sit next to him in the driver’s seat before allegations that he touched her leg and made salacious comments.

The 46-year-old is accused of turning off the cab lights on the London Underground and inviting the woman to his hotel for “Netflix and Chill”. MyLondon reports.

He denied a single sexual assault case after it was reported to British Transport Police.

A jury at Inner London Crown Court was told on Thursday that the woman had traveled to London with her friend for a long weekend and had stayed in a hotel near Waterloo.

On 21 August 2020 she traveled to Wembley Boxpark to meet up with friends and decided to return to Central London later that evening.

In order not to miss the last train, the woman, whose name cannot be given for legal reasons, was accompanied by her friend to the nearest train station shortly after midnight to board the anniversary line.

Upon her arrival, she was approached by Cummings-Stewart, who the court heard asked, “Which stop are you going to?” and invited her into the cab.

She told the court she didn’t know London and thought he was someone who could be trusted as he was wearing a TfL uniform.

She claimed he smelled like cannabis and told jurors: “It was strong, it must have been new [that he’d been smoking].” She said she sat next to him while he worked at the controls of the train.

During the trip to Waterloo, he asked her questions about her visit to London, the location of her hotel and asked her to remove her Covid-19 mask, she claims.

The woman claimed he “turned off the lights, closed the blinds and locked the door” and suggested he would come to her hotel in two hours after his shift ended.

He also told her he wanted to shower with her and “Netflix and chill” before taking her phone and insisting she accept his number, the court was told.

The woman told jurors she was “uncomfortable” and refused to give her own number, telling him she was 19, before texting her friend that couldn’t be sent due to signal problems.

As they rode between subway stations, she said he reached out to give her a high five before beginning to touch her thigh.

After arriving at Waterloo station, the woman insisted it was her stop and went through a side door.

Of her reaction to the incident, she said: “My heart was beating very, very fast. As soon as I got off the platform, I was jogging, my heart pounding.”

She said she confided in her mother a few days later and reported him to Transport for London customer service.

The jury heard the recorded call, in which she described his behavior as “inappropriate,” saying, “I was really scared, I didn’t know what was going to happen and I was really scared of what was going to happen.”

Her mother took the witness stand and said through tears: “She was sitting at the table, I was cooking I think and I knew something was wrong, she’s my daughter.

“I could see that she wanted to tell me something. The way she looked, the way she looked at me, her whole posture. She brought it up. She said she had something to say to me.

“My gut feeling was that something happened to a man and she’s going to tell me something I don’t want to hear.

Then she tried to explain what had happened. From what I can remember she said something happened on the subway and she said a man touched her.

The first thing I asked her was ‘Are you going to be raped’ because that’s my first fear and she broke down and cried.”

She continued: “She then said he told her where she was staying, she said where she was staying and what she was doing in London, then he suggested he could come back to the hotel with her to have sex, and he would shower out and no one would know.

“Then she said she was so scared that she told him he was younger than her, hoping that would scare him off and leave her alone. He took her phone, put his number on her phone and told her to call him.”

Cummings-Stewart has denied the allegation, claiming he first approached the woman because she looked like his sister

He said he invited her into the cockpit because she looked “distressed” and claimed she told him she was being followed, which the woman told the jury was “not true at all.”

As per Transport for London policy, drivers are not permitted to allow passengers into the cockpit before approaching controls or a manager.

During his police interview, Cummings-Stewart said he “overlooked” this guidance but wanted to ensure its protection.

He also denied smoking cannabis or consuming alcohol or drugs while on the train.

The process goes on.