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Donaldson rape accuser says he apologised to her years later at a Christian centre

Julian O'Neill,Crime and justice correspondent, Newry Crown Courtand
Luke Sproule,Reporter, BBC News NI
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One of the two alleged victims in the Sir Jeffrey Donaldson trial, who has accused him of raping her when she was a child, has claimed he apologised to her at a meeting arranged at a Christian centre in Armoy a number of years later.

The woman, known as Complainant B, is the older of two alleged victims who have accused the former Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) leader of sexual abuse.

The jury in Sir Jeffrey's trial at Newry Crown Court has been watching her interview with police.

Ten of the 18 sex abuse charges he denies relate to Complainant B, with the offences allegedly committed between 1985 and 1991.

Warning: This report contains details that some readers may find distressing

Complainant B's ABE (Achieving Best Evidence) interview, which lasted 75 minutes was played at Newry Crown Court on Tuesday morning.

At points in the interview, she was tearful and her words were occasionally inaudible.

She alleged Sir Jeffrey used to put his hands down her underwear "quite a lot".

Recalling the alleged rape incident, when she was of primary school age, she claimed he put his feet between her feet and then pulled her legs apart.

His breathing was heavy and he was panting, she said.

She then added she felt something "different" and "something I'd never felt before".

Complainant B stated: "I hated it yet I thought if I pretend to be asleep he'll just stop and lose interest.

"I thought what's the point in shouting."

She said the following day she felt "really sick" and "anxious".

Complainant B also said she remembered another incident in which Sir Jeffrey allegedly lifted up her top and "played" with her breasts.

She claimed to detectives that Lady Eleanor Donaldson had witnessed it and walked away.

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Lady Donaldson, pictured here in February 2025, is facing a trial of facts on five charges of aiding and abetting

Complainant B later said in her police interview that she was referred to a Christian centre after starting to drink and take some drugs in her teenage years.

She stated the meeting was arranged after she disclosed her alleged abuse to a woman connected to the Christian Family Centre in Armoy.

She said Sir Jeffrey attended a meeting arranged by Linda and Davey Hoy at the Christian Family Centre, which they ran, when she was a teenager.

"He [Sir Jeffrey] apologised for what he had done to me in the past" she said.

"I remember thinking 'this is a bit weird and surreal' being here."

The woman added that she had thought once she told somebody about the alleged abuse that "that would be it and it would all be out there".

Complainant B also stated that in the summer of 2023 she was contacted by Lady Donaldson through Linda Hoy, allegedly saying she wanted to seek Complainant B's forgiveness.

Sir Jeffrey also denies acts of gross indecency and indecent assault against Complainant A when she was a child, between 1999 and 2008.

His wife, Lady Donaldson, denies five charges related to aiding and abetting.

She faces a trial of the facts after she was previously deemed unfit to face a conventional trial on mental health grounds, and is therefore not participating in proceedings.

The trial continues.