Schoolgirl accused man of rape after watching EastEnders episode

High Court: Mark Dunbar is on trial for rape at the Glasgow court.© Deadline

A schoolgirl who claims she was repeatedly raped decided to name her alleged attacker after watching an EastEnders episode about child abuse.

The girl, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was giving evidence at the trial of 29-year-old Mark Dunbar, from East Kilbride, who denies raping her and her mother.

The High Court in Glasgow heard that in 2010, when the girl was 11, she saw a storyline on the TV soap and told her mother she had been sexually abused by the accused.

Mr Dunbar is alleged to have raped and sexually abused the girl when she was aged between six and 11 at various addresses in Lanarkshire.

He is also accused of raping her mother on various occasions between September 2009 and January 2010. Dunbar denies all the charges against him. He has lodged a special defence of consent to having sex with the mother.

On Monday the girl, who is now 14, told advocate depute Jane Farquarson about watching an episode of EastEnders in which Bianca Butcher's daughter Whitney Jackson was sexually abused.

The girl then told her mother that Dunbar had been sexually abusing her. Her mother then called the police. Ms Farquharson asked: "You never told your mum about this until January 2010" and she replied: "No, after EastEnders I just told her."

The girl told the jury that Dunbar began touching her private parts when she was six and then alleged that he began to rape her when she was around seven or eight years old.

She said: "He started touching me and that on my private parts after wrestling with me.. And then it got worse. He ended up sleeping with me. He had sex with me." She was asked: "Did you want him to do this to you?" and replied: "No, but I was scared of him."

The girl said that Dunbar would undress her and then take his trousers off before having sex with her. She told the court that he never said a word as he sexually assaulted her. The girl was asked how often he had sex with her and replied: "A few times a week."

She also claimed that on one occasion he showed her a video of a man and woman having sex. Ms Farquharson said: "You have told us that as you got older you realised this shouldn't be happening, how did you feel?" and she replied: "Upset."

The jury was read out a joint minute of agreement which revealed that a doctor had examined the girl after the allegations were made in 2010 and found that she had a sexually transmitted disease. Ms Farquharson asked the girl: "Have you had any sexual experience with anyone other than Mr Dunbar?"and she replied: "No."

The 14-year-old was then asked if she had made it all up because she didn't like Dunbar and said: "No." The trial, before temporary judge John Morris QC, continues.

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