Woman dragged into bushes on Marriott's Way, Norwich — Derry Bates denies sex attack
A woman feared she would be raped and killed after being punched and dragged into woods on Marriott's Way in Norwich. Defendant Derry Bates, 44, denies all charges at Norwich Crown Court.
Victim feared for her life during Marriott's Way attack, court told
A woman dragged into woodland on a popular Norwich walking route told police she believed she was going to be raped and killed, Norwich Crown Court heard on Tuesday.
According to edp24.co.uk, the victim — who cannot be identified for legal reasons — was speaking to a friend on her phone while walking along Marriott's Way, near Barker Street, at around 1.30pm on 24 May this year when the defendant approached from behind and attacked her.
Prosecuting counsel Danielle O'Donovan told the jury that Derry Bates, 44, "punched her in the face a number of times", causing her to fall to the ground, before dragging her into the woods and pulling down her trousers and underwear. The woman screamed during the attack and offered both her phone and her bag, but Bates refused to take them.
"She thought she was going to be raped because he pulled down her trousers," O'Donovan said, adding that the woman later told police: "I then began to think I would be killed."
Her screams were heard by two men in the Barker Street area, who ran to the scene. Bates told them his girlfriend was "being a slag." The woman, found on the ground with her clothing pulled down, told the men he was not her boyfriend, that she had a husband, and that the police should be called.
O'Donovan, opening the prosecution's case, said Bates had "intended to carry out a sex attack" and "did try to cause her really serious harm." She added that he had "wanted to cause her really serious harm."
Bates, of no fixed address, has denied all charges. He did not appear in court on Tuesday but was represented by Andrew Oliver. He faces charges of attempting to cause grievous bodily harm with intent, assault occasioning actual bodily harm, and two counts of committing an offence with intent to commit a sexual offence. The trial continues.
Source: The Sun