A man accused of rape has admitted he lied to his mother when she confronted him over allegations that he sexually touched a woman in her twenties, but insists that he had consensual sex with his accuser.

The trial of Gurpreet Singh, aged 28, of Missenden Gardens in Burnham, continued at Aylesbury Crown Court this morning (Thursday).

Singh is accused of one count of rape, which allegedly took place in Amersham on February 25, 2018. He has pleaded not guilty to the charge.

Today (Thursday), the court heard from Singh himself when he took to the witness stand to give evidence on what allegedly took place, taking questions from prosecutor Terence Woods.

The court heard that when Singh’s mother found out about an allegation against him, she demanded that he swear on a holy picture of Guru Nanak, the founder of Sikhism, that he did not touch his accuser.

Singh swore his innocence on the picture, but later when he was arrested by police on suspicion of rape, he told officers that he and his accuser had consensual sex.

When Mr Woods asked why he lied to his mother, Singh said: “The real reason why I lied is the embarrassment I felt to be speaking to my mother.

“Her being a female, I didn’t feel comfortable talking to her about sexual intercourse.”

In response to this Mr Woods said: ”You had no other honest account to give, that you had sexual intercourse without consent.

“That’s why you chose to lie numerous times, isn’t it?

“That’s why you chose not to speak to your mother, because there was no honest explanation?”

Singh denied that this was the case.

During his evidence, Singh told the court that when he learned of the allegations against him, he met up with his girlfriend, who is still with him today, and told her that he had consensual sex with his accuser.

He told the court: “After the allegation was made, I went to go to my girlfriend. I was quite stressed about the fact that she (his accuser) was trying to say something when something else had happened.

“We went to the gym, and in the spa area we had this conversation.”

Asking Singh to recall the events on the night of the alleged offence, Mr Woods said: “You say that you had sexual intercourse with her (the complainant). At any stage did you ask ‘is this ok?’”

In response, Singh said: “I did not, no.”

When Mr Woods asked him why, Singh stated that the complainant had sexually touched him while they were lying in bed together, saying “at that point, I thought that was consensual.”

Mr Woods then said: “You have got a girlfriend, you still have the same girlfriend. Why didn’t you say ‘this isn’t right, stop this?’”

“In that moment, I would say I was aroused,” said Singh. “I felt it was right at the time.”

When the prosecutor had finished, Singh’s defence lawyer Michael Newport asked his client what happened when he was arrested.

Singh said: “I was shocked. I said I was not guilty, I said it was consensual sex.”

The trial continues.