Man accused of rape says woman 'flagged' his car

The trial heard the alleged victim had been at Vogue nightclub in Bedford

A man who denies raping a woman in a layby has told a court that his accuser and her friend "flagged" down his car after leaving a nightclub.

The woman said she was attacked in the early hours of 26 August 2024 after leaving Vogue nightclub in Bedford with a female friend and being offered a lift.

Robert Balcan, 22, and Adrian Madarasz, 25, who lived together in Evans Croft, Shortstown, near Bedford, both deny kidnap and rape.

Mr Balcan told a crown court trial in Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire, on Friday that the woman and her friend "flagged" his BMW, as he drove through Bedford.

"They were flagging me to stop," Mr Balcan told jurors.

"They were both flagging me and they were looking at me."

He said he and Mr Madarasz had been in Bedford trying to find a pub to drink in.

Mr Balcan and Mr Madarasz said sex was consensual.

Two men accused of kidnap and rape are on trial at a crown court hearing in Huntingdon

Prosecutor Laura Blackband described Mr Balcan and Mr Madarasz as a "double act", who looked for "drunk women to target".

Miss Blackband said the woman, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, had been raped after Mr Balcan offered her a lift, then stopped in a layby.

She said the woman had been "thrown" from the car after the alleged attack and had knocked on a door for help.

The property the woman approached was the home of an off-duty Metropolitan Police officer, jurors heard.

Tests had shown the woman had alcohol in her system equivalent to being twice the legal drink-drive limit, jurors have heard.

The trial continues.