Alleged rape victim denies being 'triggered' to report

Former police watchdog chief Michael Lockwood denies a total of 17 charges

A woman has denied being "triggered" to make historic rape claims against the former head of a police watchdog after seeing him on the news.

Michael Lockwood, 65, of Epsom, Surrey, is on trial at the Old Bailey accused of sexually abusing two 14-year-old girls while working as a lifeguard at a leisure centre near Hull, in East Yorkshire, more than 30 years ago.

The first alleged victim claimed the former director general of the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) raped her in a store cupboard three times.

Mr Lockwood denies a total of 17 charges, including three counts of rape and 14 counts of indecent assault against two girls between 1979 and 1986.

The first alleged victim, who cannot be identified, said he indecently assaulted her repeatedly.

Following his arrest, Lockwood initially denied knowing her, and later suggested she was "obsessed" with him.

Giving evidence on Tuesday, the alleged victim said she had been triggered by something someone said to her.

'Public position'

Sarah Elliott KC, for the defence, said: "You had seen this person on the news and that was the trigger?"

The woman replied: "No, that's not correct. I may have described it as triggering seeing him, but it was not the trigger event."

Ms Elliott said: "I want to suggest to you the sequence of events may have been this: You see Michael Lockwood on the news because he had a public position and he is in the news a lot and he is a face you recognised because he did work at (the leisure centre) 40 years ago and it's after that you Google and decide he is the person you say you had sex with."

The woman replied: "No, that's not how it happened at all."

Questioned by prosecutor Jonathan Polnay KC, the woman said: “I could not get closure without reporting and it was something I had to do.

“What happened back then were his choices, they were not mine.”

Mr Lockwood was director general from 2018 to 2022 of the IOPC, which handles complaints against police in England and Wales.

The trial continues.