A girl told a jury yesterday her uncle had sex with her while she was on holiday in his Dublin flat in 1995. The girl, from Northern Ireland and now aged 11, said they slept in a double bed together.
She was giving evidence via video-link to the Central Criminal Court on the first day of the 30-year-old Belfast man's trial. He has pleaded not guilty to raping and sexually assaulting her on unknown dates from June 17th to August 8th in 1995.
In reply to defence counsel Mr Barry White SC, the girl said she had never made an allegation of sex abuse against anyone else before. She agreed, however, that she had once put her underwear through the letterbox of her mother's house because she did not want her and another uncle she liked to go out. She was left in care of her babysitter's husband.
She said this other uncle came home later and "jumped to the wrong conclusion". She was not too sure if anyone went to the RUC over the matter. Mr White: "You did it to draw attention to yourself". Witness: "I suppose, yeah. I did not want my uncle to go out as I am close to him."
The alleged victim agreed she did not tell her mother when she talked to her on the phone during the stay in Dublin that the accused was abusing her. She kept telling her mother she had pains in her head and side, she said.
The trial, before Mr Justice Smith and the jury, continues.