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Witness inspired by #MeToo movement, court hears

A FORMER Scottish government official who Alex Salmond allegedly tried to rape during the independence referendum campaign has said that she suffered from “flashbacks” following her ordeal.

The witness, referred to as Woman H, continued to give evidence today at the Edinburgh High Court trial of the former first minister on charges of sexual assault.

The woman, who yesterday alleged that she had been sexually assaulted on two occasions by Mr Salmond in May and June 2014, said she was unable to process the reported attacks for a “long time.”

It was not until late 2017, when she became aware of the #MeToo movement, that she came to a “realisation.”

Woman H said: “I just buried it deep and tried to pretend it didn’t happen.

“The first minister is a powerful man and I didn’t want to get on the wrong side of him.

“I started to have what I would describe as flashbacks.”

She later added that Mr Salmond was a man “who was often aggressive, who was often bullying, who was now forcibly trying it on with me for what had felt like a very long time.”

During cross-examination, Woman H said that she had been assaulted by Mr Salmond at Bute House in May 2014.

Defence lawyer Shelagh McCall QC told the jury that her client had not been at Bute House in Edinburgh for 20 dates that May.

Ms McCall said: “Is the truth that there was no incident in May in Bute House in the sitting room in front of the television?”

Woman H replied: “I wish that was true, but that is not the case.”

The court also heard that the alleged victim had been in contact with a number of people, including those within the SNP, before going to the police.

These exchanges included messages in which she indicated that she would work with Mr Salmond again, a year on from the reported sexual assaults.

The woman previously told the court on Monday that she had felt “hunted” by Mr Salmond moments before an alleged attempted rape in Bute House.

Evidence was also given about an alleged sexual assault in Bute House in May 2014, one of 14 charges concerning alleged offences against 10 women, which he denies.

The trial continues.

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