Rape accused tells court sex was consensual

The woman was allegedly attacked at student halls of residence in Portsmouth

A student from Saudi Arabia accused of raping a woman he met in a nightclub has told a court they had consensual sex.

Waleed Alharbi is on trial at Winchester Crown Court accused of the rape and attempted rape of the woman, aged in her 30s, at his student accommodation in Greetham Street, Portsmouth, in the early hours of 28 June.

The 26-year-old, who was studying at a Portsmouth language school, said he met the complainant at the Astoria nightclub, where he had drunk four glasses of vodka and Sprite during a three-hour period.

Mr Alharbi, who told the court he had worked as an airport maintenance manager in Saudi Arabia while doing a finance degree, said the alcohol did not affect him much.

He said he began dancing with the complainant, adding: "I liked her and I noticed she liked me back as well."

Speaking through a translator, he rated his English at the time as three out of 10 and said the complainant spoke "simple English" to him and offered to help him learn.

He said: "She was fully accepting me and I didn't feel there was any barrier between us, as if I knew this person for a very long time.

"When I drink I become open so I had feelings towards her."

Mr Alharbi said after the nightclub closed, they decided to go to his flat "to continue partying" and they held hands as they walked, before he carried her part of the way because she was tired.

He said they each had a friend with them who both left at one point to buy a plaster for him after he banged his head.

The defendant said he and the complainant began kissing.

"She is up for it, because that is what I felt from her body language, she was producing encouraging noises, it was a romantic moment," he told jurors.

"We were totally for it with each other, the flames were increasing."

He said after they were interrupted by a neighbour, they moved to the bedroom.

Mr Alharbi said the complainant had a shower and he joined her before they consensually had sex in the bedroom.

He said she entered the room willingly and did not complain about what was happening.

The court heard Mr Alharbi had been accused of attempting to rape the complainant in the bathroom of his apartment before raping her in his bedroom.

The defendant has denied both charges and the trial continues.