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| 'Disgusting, vile, repulsive' Rolf Harris violated my trust, woman tells court | 'Disgusting, vile, repulsive' Rolf Harris violated my trust, woman tells court |
| (about 14 hours later) | |
| Rolf Harris was a "disgusting, vile, repulsive man" who switched in an instant from his amiable television persona to grope a teenager who had just asked for his autograph, a court has been told. | Rolf Harris was a "disgusting, vile, repulsive man" who switched in an instant from his amiable television persona to grope a teenager who had just asked for his autograph, a court has been told. |
| Recounting an alleged assault by the Australian-born entertainer, a woman said she "saw the dark side of a man who I thought could be trusted" when Harris put his hand up her dress as they were dancing at a public event when she was 16. | Recounting an alleged assault by the Australian-born entertainer, a woman said she "saw the dark side of a man who I thought could be trusted" when Harris put his hand up her dress as they were dancing at a public event when she was 16. |
| "In my wildest dreams I didn't expect that behaviour – from one moment being charming and what you see on the television and the next moment to have his hand up my skirt trying to get into my pants," she said. | "In my wildest dreams I didn't expect that behaviour – from one moment being charming and what you see on the television and the next moment to have his hand up my skirt trying to get into my pants," she said. |
| Southwark crown court heard from three women on Monday who separately claim Harris indecently assaulted them without warning when they were aged between 11 and 18. | |
| The youngest alleged victim said she was in her pyjamas when Harris told her: "I want to be the first one to introduce you to a tongue kiss." | The youngest alleged victim said she was in her pyjamas when Harris told her: "I want to be the first one to introduce you to a tongue kiss." |
| Another woman told the court she feared she might be raped when, aged 18 and on holiday in Malta, Harris pulled her into a side room of a bar and forcibly kissed and groped her. | Another woman told the court she feared she might be raped when, aged 18 and on holiday in Malta, Harris pulled her into a side room of a bar and forcibly kissed and groped her. |
| The witness who alleges being assaulted when she was 16 told the court she was working in a restaurant in New Zealand in 1970 when Harris came in for a public event. | The witness who alleges being assaulted when she was 16 told the court she was working in a restaurant in New Zealand in 1970 when Harris came in for a public event. |
| Answering questions from Sasha Wass QC, prosecuting, the woman, who like the other alleged victims cannot be named for legal reasons, said she initially found Harris to be charming as he posed for a picture and signed an autograph. She said: "He was the public Rolf Harris, the entertainer." | Answering questions from Sasha Wass QC, prosecuting, the woman, who like the other alleged victims cannot be named for legal reasons, said she initially found Harris to be charming as he posed for a picture and signed an autograph. She said: "He was the public Rolf Harris, the entertainer." |
| She then began dancing with Harris, the woman said. Breaking down in tears, she said: "In a flash, in a moment, I saw the dark side of a man who I thought could be trusted. I was in a public place, he slid his hand down my back against my bottom and then in a moment put his hand up my skirt and tried to put his hand in between my legs." | She then began dancing with Harris, the woman said. Breaking down in tears, she said: "In a flash, in a moment, I saw the dark side of a man who I thought could be trusted. I was in a public place, he slid his hand down my back against my bottom and then in a moment put his hand up my skirt and tried to put his hand in between my legs." |
| The woman said she pulled away from Harris and immediately left the restaurant, telling her mother the next day what had happened: "I told her what a disgusting, vile, repulsive man that he was and how he had totally taken away trust and the fact that he was a celebrity that he violated my trust." | The woman said she pulled away from Harris and immediately left the restaurant, telling her mother the next day what had happened: "I told her what a disgusting, vile, repulsive man that he was and how he had totally taken away trust and the fact that he was a celebrity that he violated my trust." |
| The woman said she did not inform police as she did not think she would be believed, only doing so when she saw a media report in 2012 about Harris's arrest. She said to her husband: "I told you. They've finally got the bastard. I was so relieved." | The woman said she did not inform police as she did not think she would be believed, only doing so when she saw a media report in 2012 about Harris's arrest. She said to her husband: "I told you. They've finally got the bastard. I was so relieved." |
| Earlier, the court was told Harris assaulted the youngest alleged victim while he stayed with friends in Darwin, Australia, in 1969. | Earlier, the court was told Harris assaulted the youngest alleged victim while he stayed with friends in Darwin, Australia, in 1969. |
| The alleged victim, now in her mid-50s, said she was spending the day with Harris's friends, who were close to her family, as she was ill from school and her parents were working. She spent the morning in bed and went downstairs to find Harris alone and working on a wood artwork, she said. | The alleged victim, now in her mid-50s, said she was spending the day with Harris's friends, who were close to her family, as she was ill from school and her parents were working. She spent the morning in bed and went downstairs to find Harris alone and working on a wood artwork, she said. |
| "He asked me how old I was. He said: 'Good. I want to be the first one to introduce you to a tongue kiss.'" The woman said Harris then pulled her towards him and kissed her, saying she was "absolutely repulsed" by it. | "He asked me how old I was. He said: 'Good. I want to be the first one to introduce you to a tongue kiss.'" The woman said Harris then pulled her towards him and kissed her, saying she was "absolutely repulsed" by it. |
| The incident shocked her so much that to this day she suffers "almost a panic attack" if her husband pulls her towards him for a kiss, the woman told the court. | The incident shocked her so much that to this day she suffers "almost a panic attack" if her husband pulls her towards him for a kiss, the woman told the court. |
| The final witness described encountering Harris in Malta in 1970, when she was 18, after he helped her find a doctor to treat her boyfriend, who had cut his toe swimming. She later returned alone to a bar to thank Harris, she told the court. | The final witness described encountering Harris in Malta in 1970, when she was 18, after he helped her find a doctor to treat her boyfriend, who had cut his toe swimming. She later returned alone to a bar to thank Harris, she told the court. |
| After they chatted about art, she said, he took her into a side room to show her some paintings. He pushed her against a wall and began giving her "slobbery" kisses before touching her breasts and putting his hand in her pants, she said. | After they chatted about art, she said, he took her into a side room to show her some paintings. He pushed her against a wall and began giving her "slobbery" kisses before touching her breasts and putting his hand in her pants, she said. |
| The woman said that while she was initially "a bit flattered" about being kissed by a celebrity she was soon alarmed. Harris suddenly stopped and apologised, she said. | The woman said that while she was initially "a bit flattered" about being kissed by a celebrity she was soon alarmed. Harris suddenly stopped and apologised, she said. |
| Asked by Wass how she felt then, the woman said: "In shock, really. Happy that was it. I thought I was going to be raped." | Asked by Wass how she felt then, the woman said: "In shock, really. Happy that was it. I thought I was going to be raped." |
| Harris, 84, who lives in Bray, Berkshire, denies 12 counts of indecent assault. The evidence from the three women on Monday morning does not form any of the counts as all the alleged incidents took place outside the UK before 1997 and thus cannot be prosecuted in Britain. The trial continues. |