“Arshia initiated sexual contact with me,” Premjee told
India-West in a candid interview, using only the first name of the alleged victim, who has been named in that manner in court documents. “I didn’t drink with her, didn’t offer her alcohol. I had no way of knowing how much she had to drink before we met,” said the Southern California-born man who grew up in Mumbai.
Premjee also noted that Arshia – who also grew up in Mumbai – did not want to press charges, and told police she could not remember that night.
After initially meeting April 1 at Banditos Tequila and Taco club – less than a mile away from the USC campus – the two took an Uber back to the university, and engaged in their brief encounter in a common area of Arshia’s dorm, he recalled. Arshia’s roommate found the pair, and called the resident assistant (see earlier India-West story
here).
Premjee was contacted later that day by the Los Angeles Police Department, after Arshia was taken to the hospital for alcohol poisoning. He was arrested on charges of sexual assault and sexual penetration with a foreign object – he used his fingers during the encounter, violating Section 289 of the California Penal Code – and held on $100,000. Premjee, who is a U.S. citizen, made bail and was released the same day; he initially faced 10 years in state prison.