UK man tells rape trial he thought snoring woman was 'roleplaying'

A UK man accused of raping a woman whose husband invited strangers to have sex with her told a court Wednesday he heard her snoring but thought she was "roleplaying".

Richard Wilkins, 62, has pleaded not guilty to rape and assault by penetration in 2016, when he responded to a Craigslist ad by Philip Young to have sex with his then-wife Joanne, who has waived her right to anonymity.

Wilkins and three other men are standing trial at a court in southern England accused of various sexual offences committed jointly with the husband against Joanne Young. Another man has also admitted similar charges.

Young has admitted multiple counts of drugging and raping her over 13 years. The court was told he invited men to have sex with her while she was asleep or unconscious, presenting it as a "kink" for the couple. 

Wilkins told Winchester Crown Court that he heard a "snoring noise" when he approached a blindfolded and bound Joanne Young in bed.

"I considered this was still part of the role-playing scenario that I was acting out," Wilkins said, adding she stopped snoring when he started having sex with her.

He said he did not suspect that she was drugged or drunk and did not know she was not consenting to the scenario.

Earlier this week, a jury heard statements from another defendant, Connor Sanderson-Doyle, 32, who said Philip Young was a "vile monster" for his actions against his wife.

Sanderson-Doyle, who responded to a Craigslist ad when he was 21 in 2016, said he thought it was a couple who wanted to "fulfil our fantasy".

'Sick game'

He said Young was "using pawns in his sick little game".

"I am not stupid and I am not a monster, in hindsight I should have done more," said Sanderson-Doyle, who denies sexual assault by penetration and sexual touching.

The other defendants are Norman Macksoni, 48, accused of rape, and Mohammed Hassan, 38, accused of sexual touching.

The prosecution argued that while the defendants may not have seen Young administer sedatives, they "could patently see its effect".

"They wanted to enact their fantasy and Phil Young's fantasy and they did not care about Jo Young's feelings at all," the prosecution previously told the jury.

There are multiple cases currently before UK courts of alleged drug-facilitated sexual assault, with awareness of the crime growing following the unrelated high-profile 2024 French trial of Dominique Pelicot.

He was found guilty of secretly drugging his wife, Gisele, for years and inviting scores of men to rape her while she was unconscious.

Gisele Pelicot also waived her right to anonymity in that trial to raise awareness about sexual violence.