Student in rape case 'wanted intercourse': Defendant tells court of sexually explicit gestures after party

A student who accused a fellow undergraduate of raping her invited her alleged attacker to have sexual intercourse with her, an Old Bailey court was told yesterday.

Austen Donnellan, 21, a student at King's College, London, denies raping a 21-year- old woman after a drunken Christmas party last year.

A statement Mr Donnellan had made to the university's disciplinary committee described how he and the girl had been kissing on the dance floor.

Both had been drinking heavily, so Mr Donnellan escorted her back to her room in a university hall of residence. He lay her on the bed, removed her shoes, then went to the lavatory. When he returned, she was lying in her underwear.

Mr Donnellan said he asked the woman if she minded if he returned to the party, whereupon she 'beckoned me to kiss her again and suggested to me to lie on top of her. She was making sexually explicit gestures to me and began to remove my T-shirt. I asked her whether she was sure and she continued saying 'fuck me'.'

During the hour they spent having intercourse, Mr Donnellan maintained that 'at no time did I think that intercourse took place without (her) consent or knowledge'.

Two to three hours later, he awoke to find the woman stroking him. He responded by undoing the buttons on her nightdress and rolling on top of her. But he said that after 15 seconds it became clear that she was only semi-conscious and he rolled off. She then reportedly said: 'I cannot believe you just tried to do that,' and walked out of the room.

Robert Ince, a fellow student who had shared a house with the woman the previous year, said that on at least three occasions she and the accused had got drunk together in a university night-club. They would kiss each other 'passionately' and pet heavily.

He said Mr Donnellan had told him the following week about the alleged rape. 'He told me he had been to a hall party with her and that things had progressed to the extent they had slept together, and now she was accusing him of rape.' Mr Donnellan said he had asked her consent 'two or three times'.

Peter Upton, a solicitor at King's College, told the court that in an effort to settle the matter internally, the university had offered Mr Donnellan the opportunity to face a reduced charge before a disciplinary hearing.

However, Lord Russell, a professor at King's and the defendant's personal tutor, wrote back to the authorities saying Mr Donnellan had refused as 'he does not regard himself guilty of anything'.

The case continues.