Defendant says he believed woman abused by husband had consented

A man accused of sexually abusing Joanne Young has told Winchester crown court that he believed she had agreed to the encounter after he responded to an advert. Giving evidence on Monday, November 2, Connor Sanderson-Doyle said he had seen no indication that she was drugged, intoxicated or taking part against her wishes.

Joanne Young was repeatedly drugged and raped by her husband, former Conservative councillor Philip Young, over a 13-year period at their home in Swindon, Wiltshire. She has waived her right to anonymity. Four men are standing trial accused of sexually abusing her, while her husband has admitted multiple offences.

Sanderson-Doyle, 32, from Swindon, denies sexual assault by penetration and sexual touching in June 2016. He told the court that he understood the advert to have been posted by a couple seeking other men to take part in a shared fantasy, rather than by the husband acting alone. He said he accepted that description at face value.

Explaining his decision to respond, Sanderson-Doyle said he had been curious about trying an unfamiliar experience, although he had not been sure it would appeal to him. He said he was 21 when he read the advert and that the encounter took place after his 22nd birthday.

He described feeling uncomfortable and outside his comfort zone during the encounter. Sanderson-Doyle also told the jury that he kept his balaclava on after realising Philip Young was recording with a camcorder because he did not want to appear in a pornographic film.

Sanderson-Doyle said the charges had devastated his life and career. He told the court he had lost the security clearance connected to his work on nuclear defence projects for the Ministry of Defence. He apologised to Joanne Young for his involvement and said he had never imagined someone could treat their wife in such a way.

He said he had thought daily since his arrest about whether he could have acted differently or missed warning signs. He described feeling guilty over the possibility that different actions on his part might have stopped the abuse in 2016, eight years before 2024.

The other defendants are Norman Macksoni, 48, of Sharnbrook, Bedfordshire, who denies one rape charge; Mohammed Hassan, 38, of Swindon, who denies one charge of sexual touching; and Richard Wilkins, 62, of Toothill, Swindon, who denies rape and assault by penetration.

Philip Young, 50, has admitted 56 charges. A sixth defendant, Dean Hamilton, 47, of Street, Somerset, has pleaded guilty to one count of assault by penetration, two counts of sexual assault and one count of rape. The trial remains ongoing.