Two men on trial over alleged Dublin hotel rape

This report is a localnews.ie summary based on public court reporting and records; sources are listed below.

The trial of two unnamed men accused of raping a homeless woman in a Dublin city centre hotel in March 2012 had begun. The proceedings were reported on 4 June 2015.

The trial was continuing at the Central Criminal Court before Ms Justice Margaret Heneghan and a jury of four women and eight men.

Outlining the prosecution case, Pauline Walley SC alleged that one man physically raped the woman while the other watched and refused to help. The alleged attack took place in a room at the George Frederic Handel Hotel on Fishamble Street, Dublin. Counsel said the woman was grabbed and pushed onto a bed when she tried to leave.

Counsel said the accused told gardaí that the woman consented to sexual intercourse and accused her of stealing a jacket. Pauline Walley SC said the woman had kissed and cuddled the man earlier that night, but that this did not amount to consent to sexual intercourse.

Pauline Walley SC also alleged that, when the woman tried to leave again, the other accused grabbed her, threatened to throw her out of the window if she told anyone and said they knew where she lived.