'She was frightened and scared of him': Family of woman allegedly raped by Telford magistrate
A woman who was allegedly raped by a magistrate told family members how he took her to his home to have sex with her, a court heard.
Santokh Minhas, of Telford, is accused of raping a woman with a learning disability on at least six occasions.
Family members gave evidence during his trial at Worcester Crown Court, sitting at the Shirehall in Hereford, yesterday.
They recalled how she told them about one of the alleged sexual encounters.
One member of the family said she had disclosed how Minhas took her to his house, undressed her and then had sex with her.
She told the jury: "She said she was frightened and she was scared of him."
When asked whether she was ever forgetful, the family member replied: "She does forget things but significant things she's pretty spot on."
Another family member, who also took the witness stand yesterday, described what the alleged victim had told her.
She told the jury: "(She) turned around and said that Santokh had taken her to his house, locked the door and asked her to take her clothes off. At this point I became very shocked."
She recalled that she had used words to describe genitals, adding: "That shocked me even more. They are not words that she uses."
She said afterwards the woman became withdrawn and was not herself.
Detective Constable Pauline Newton, of West Mercia Police, also gave evidence yesterday.
She told the jury what the woman had disclosed to her. She said: "She told me she had 'gone to him(sic) house, he took his clothes off, my clothes off'."
When asked what had happened next, the detective said the woman told her: "Think we had sex."
Detective Constable Newton said: "She said she was frightened of him. She was asking me not to tell 'mum'. I asked why. She just kept saying not to tell mum, she was frightened to tell mum."
The 67-year-old, of Sutton Bank, Coalport, denies six charges of rape against the woman, who cannot be named for legal reasons.
The court previously heard she was significantly younger than him.
The assaults are said to have taken place between August 2014 and May last year.
The jury was previously told Minhas had been deputy headmaster at a school in Oswestry before moving to a school in Telford.
He has also served as a magistrate in Telford.
The trial continues.
