'A lot of contact' after alleged rape

Photo / File

A teenager who says she was gang raped at a Canterbury beach bonfire party was socialising with one of her alleged attackers months later and before a police complaint was laid, a court has heard.

Stuart "Mitch" Lewis, 21, Troy McIver, 21, Isaac Mould, 21, Brook Norris, 22, and Ky Reid, 21, each deny three charges of rape and one of unlawful sexual connection at Woodend Beach, 25kms north of Christchurch, on May 23 last year.

At a trial in Christchurch, which began on Monday, the Crown allege the girl, whose identity is protected by statutory suppression, was raped by Mould, McIver, and Norris, while Lewis sexually violated her.

All five have been jointly charged on the basis that they either committed the acts, assisted or encouraged others, or at least formed a common intention to sexually assault the complainant.

They claim that the complainant, who was aged 16 at the time, was a willing party who had been "hitting on the boys" and had "enjoyed it" and "wanted it".

The complainant is being cross-examined on the witness stand today.

Under cross-examination by Mould's defence counsel Tony Greig, the complainant accepted that there had been "a lot of contact" between her and Mould after the alleged rape.

She admitted going to Mould's house on August 30.

She also admitted going to his house on September 14 to play drinking games.

However, she denied kissing Mould and Reid at that party.

She also remembered cutting Mould's hair in early September last year.

When asked if she remembered her parents asking if she was "going out" with Mould, she said no.

When Mr Greig asked her why there was so much contact between her and her alleged rapist, she replied: "Because he was like a brother to me."

The Crown alleges that at the bonfire, the complainant became "drunk" after drinking RTDs.

The five accused then began making unwelcome passes at her, the Crown alleges.

The victim would later allegedly tell police that she was led between 20m and 70m into the sand dunes, away from the fire's light, by two of the accused.

"She asked them where they were going and told them she wanted to go back to bonfire but they ignored her," Crown prosecutor Deidre Orchard earlier told the jury of ten men and two women.

The woman says the other three accused then joined them.

She alleges that her shorts were ripped off and she was raped and sexually violated.

Ms Orchard said the woman was screaming and trying to push them off her.

She told police that Lewis told her to "shut the f*** up sweetheart".

The alleged victim says she was held down and a hand was put over her mouth to muffle her screams.

When her friend came to find her, he heard her scream twice, the Crown alleges.

Her friend would later tell police that the alleged victim was "in a very bad way... shocked... shaken, and very distressed".

She texted her mother to pick her up but did not tell her she had been raped.

Her mother "found out what happened" months later, laid a complaint with police, and the five men were charged.

The trial, before Justice David Gendall, continues.