Abuser threw victim’s brother off Ovingdean cliffs, court told

A man accused of raping a young girl allegedly threw her brother off a cliff when he found out about the abuse, a court has heard.

Anthony Stocks, 54, of Iceni Close, Goring, is charged with attempted murder, sexual assault and rape.

He allegedly threw the boy off a set of cliffs near Ovingdean, near Brighton, down onto the beach in September 2022.

Oxford Crown Court heard how his sister said Mr Stocks told her of his plan, and she warned her brother.

The boy survived but received severe injuries. Neither of the children can be named for legal reasons.

Mr Stocks is charged with four counts of sexually assaulting a child under 13, causing a child under 13 to engage in sexual activity, rape of a child under 13, attempted murder, and cruelty to a person under 16 years.

Via pre-recorded interviews the girl said Mr Stocks, who was known to her family, would force her to carry out sexual acts.

It made her "frightened" and "uncomfortable" and she ended up telling her brother about "all of it… in one big go", she said.

She said on another day Mr Stocks, referring to her brother, told her: "I want to get rid of him so we can be alone so [he] doesn't interfere with us."

"All I remember is he was going to push him of a cliff," she said of his plan.

The girl, from Oxfordshire, said she was "worried" and that night warned her brother.

When Mr Stocks arranged to take the boy on a trip away, the girl said she told her brother not to go.

She also called him "about 10 times" during the trip, she said.

Later, during a live link up with the court, she was questioned by Mr Stocks' barrister, who said his client claimed he did not do the things to her that she said.

"Is he telling the truth?" he asked.

"No," she replied.

Mr Stocks denies all the charges and the trial continues.

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