Ex-partner told rape accused to visit medic

The former girlfriend of a man who claims he was asleep when he allegedly raped a female friend has said she had seen a documentary about “sexsomnia” during the relationship and asked the man to go to a doctor.

The 28-year-old witness told his trial jury of instances when the accused man would “grind” against her in bed while he was asleep. She said her “worst fear had been realised” when the accused man told her about the alleged incident with his female friend.

The man, who cannot be named for legal reasons, has pleaded not guilty at the Central Criminal Court to one count of raping the woman at an apartment in Dublin on September 28, 2008.