Boys 'sexually assaulted child'

TWO children aged 11 tortured a six-year-old on a housing estate in Newcastle upon Tyne, a court heard yesterday. The boys are accused of sexually assaulting the child and trying to force him on to a railway line at knifepoint.

They are also accused of indecently assaulting the six- year-old's two older brothers as they played in bushes on the Shieldfield council estate.

The court heard the six- year-old, now seven, tell of his ordeal on a video recording. He described how he was molested, knifed and almost forced to walk on to a nearby railway line on 28 November last year.

The child told the court how one of the accused had given him a lovebite on the neck. He told a police officer, while in hospital after the attack: 'He bit me first then he pulled my underpants down.' The child described how one of the accused had indecently touched him and kicked him. He was then stabbed and scratched with knives. The two accused boys allegedly tried to push the child towards the nearby railway track. The boy said: 'He told me to jump on the railway or he would stab me.'

The trial was heard by Newcastle Youth Court at the city's Crown Court. Both boys are accused of indecently assaulting all three brothers. They deny assaulting the two youngest brothers, causing actual bodily harm, and making threats to kill the youngest. The trial continues tomorrow.