‘Too many similarities for collusion’, court told

JURY TOLD SOLICITOR HAD A ‘PROFESSIONAL JEKYLL AND HYDE CHARACTER’

- By CARL EVE

AJURY heard how a retired criminal defence solicitor was described by one ofhis alleged victims as having a “professional Jekyll and Hyde” character.

Alan Harris, 72, of Thorn Park, Plymouth, is on trial at Winchester Crown Court accused of 12 charges of indecent assault, eight charges of sexual assault and two charges of rape, dating from 1989 to 2015.

Prosecutor Anne Whyte KC, summed up the case against Harris said the eight complainants - one woman and seven men - had been accused during the course of the trial, of colluding with each other, of lying, of inventing their allegations in the hope of compensation, of being untrustworthy and dishonest due to their own past crimes.

However, she went on to point out that the very fact that all the complainants had been involved in criminality was the reason they came into contact with the defence solicitor who went on to represent them in police custody or in the magistrates’ court and the very fact of their criminality was what made them targets for Harris who had “absolutely no respect” for them.

She said while some of the alleged victims knew of each other, or served jail sentences at the same prisons, it did not prove Harris’ claim that they had colluded.

She said the fact that some were approached by police investigators rather than the other way around, and that each of them - including those who had no knowledge of the others - described a similar pattern in Harris's alleged offending, should be considered by the jury.

Ms Whyte KC reminded the jury that the alleged offences took place in the cells of Charles Cross police station custody suite, in the cells in the basement of Plymouth Magistrates’ Court, in his former office in North Hill and in his car, described accurately by one complainant Male E asa blue or silver S60 Volvo.