The key facts

  • Philip Young admitted 48 counts: 11 rapes, 11 counts of administering a substance with intent, 14 counts of voyeurism and others
  • Four men deny the charges; the sixth defendant, Dean Hamilton, has partially admitted guilt
  • The victim waived her anonymity and gave evidence in court

The victim's testimony

At Winchester Crown Court, on the second day of the trial of four men, two police interviews with Joanne Young were played — the ex-wife of Philip Young, who has waived her right to anonymity. According to her, the incident took place in February 2023 after an evening with friends involving alcohol. She said she was blindfolded and restrained with straps when she felt a hand on her wrist that she believed did not belong to her husband. After removing the blindfold, she heard her husband tell someone to 'get down', saw a person hiding by the bed, ran out and locked herself in the bathroom. Later she noticed an unfamiliar car outside the house. Reported by BBC News.

Young's guilty pleas and the charges against the four

Young, 50, a former Conservative councillor for Swindon, pleaded guilty to 48 counts: 14 counts of voyeurism, 11 rapes, 11 counts of administering a substance with intent, seven penetrative sexual acts, four sexual assaults and one count of publishing obscene material. According to the BBC, he also published more than 500 intimate images and videos of his ex-wife and secretly recorded her private acts without consent from 2010 to 2024. Four men are charged alongside him: Connor Sanderson-Doyle of Swindon denies a sexual assault in 2016; Norman Macksoni of Bedfordshire denies a rape in 2017; Richard Wilkins of Swindon denies rape and a penetrative act in 2016; Mohammed Hassan of Swindon denies a sexual touch in 2023. The sixth defendant, 47-year-old Dean Hamilton of Somerset, has admitted four charges, including rape. Young and Hamilton will be sentenced after the trial concludes, which is expected to last up to four weeks.

The conversation after the incident

Joanne told police that after the incident in February 2023 the couple discussed what had happened, and it was the first time she had seen her then-husband cry. According to her, Young apologised and said he had invited someone to watch their intimacy, finding the person through online forums. When she asked whether he had invited anyone before, he, she said, answered no. 'It was such an invasion of my life. I was so upset. He knows I would never have agreed,' the BBC quotes her as saying in the police interview. The editorial team notes that this information is the victim's testimony as reproduced in court; the guilt of the four defendants has not yet been established, and all of them deny the charges.

A composite image of the four defendants arriving at court. They are all wearing a hat or a hood, covering their face and eyes with glasses.Image source, Press Association
Image caption,

(From left to right) Norman Macksoni, Richard Wilkins, Connor Sanderson-Doyle and Mohammed Hassan are all on trial at Winchester Crown Court

Head and shoulders image of Joanne Young in a black top. She has black hair and is smiling. She is standing in a room in front of a painting.Image source, Wiltshire Police/PA Media
Image caption,

Joanne Young has waived her right to anonymity

Police head and shoulders image of Young, who has short greying hair and a brown/grey beard.Image source, Wiltshire Police
Image caption,

Philip Young admitted a string of sexual offences against his now ex-wife

A composite image of the four defendants arriving at court. They are all wearing a hat or a hood, covering their face and eyes with glasses.