Man, 47, accused of rape of woman after party

Prosecutors say the offence was committed in July last year at the defendant’s home.

Crown Advocate Fiona Russell told the court how the complainant had been walking home during the evening. When she looked inside a Town pub and saw somebody she knew, she decided to go inside.

She met the defendant, who was not known to her, through the third party.

A group of people decided to go to the defendant’s home later that evening.

The woman was not keen to do so but went as she had to walk past it anyway.

She said she had not found the defendant attractive and had not noticed that he was flirting with her, Advocate Russell said.

At the flat, she asked him if she could borrow some clothes as she was wearing a summer dress over her bikini and was feeling uncomfortable.

He lent her shorts and a T-shirt. Following this she fell asleep and, when she woke up, she was in a double bed, had no clothes on, and the defendant was beside her. He helped her find her clothes, Advocate Russell said.

Because of how much she had drunk she could not remember who the defendant was and had messaged a friend to ask, the court heard. Nothing had happened at this stage and, because she was feeling unwell, she stayed there for the rest of the morning.

She said the two had had more to drink downstairs and she said she would tidy the place up. To cheer him up, she had taken off her sun dress but she put it back on when he made a comment.

She fell asleep again and, when she woke, the defendant was anally raping her, Advocate Russell said.

The woman said she was very shocked and, when she got up and challenged him, he was contrite and apologetic and said: ‘Oh my God, it’s rape.’

His reaction made her feel awful and he was repeatedly apologising. She called a friend and asked him to pick her up and she reported the matter to police the next day.

Advocate Russell said trace elements of male DNA were found on swabs taken from the complainant but it was the prosecution case that the quantity did not rule out sexual activity.

The defendant was arrested.

In interview, he denied that any sexual activity had taken place. He said the group had gone back to his home after drinking.

They had been playing a game. The complainant had been asleep on the floor and he had stopped others from making fun of her. He had taken her to an upstairs bedroom that belonged to another family member and had then gone back downstairs.

He had got into the same bed as the woman at about 4am because he said his own bedsheets needed washing and another bedroom in the flat had been too messy.

He recalled the woman wearing a bikini downstairs and said he had not thought it provocative but more burlesque, Advocate Russell said.

Both had fallen asleep and he was woken by the woman getting up.

She had been apologising to him. She said she was sorry and that she thought he had been her ex-partner. He was adamant that no sexual activity had taken place and said the allegation was a false one.

Advocate Russell said the complainant’s evidence in chief would be given through her recorded interview with police and she would be cross-examined by video link.

The prosecution said it would be calling two other witnesses – the man who collected the woman from the flat and the friend who she had messaged to find out who the defendant was.

The case continues.