Former Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) leader Jeffrey Donaldson has told a court that an allegation he raped a girl several years ago is “simply not true”. Giving evidence during the third week of his trial on sexual abuse charges, the ex-MP also dismissed a claim that he touched the same girl’s breasts as “just unbelievable”.
Donaldson, 63, has pleaded not guilty to a total of 18 alleged offences. These charges encompass one count of rape, alongside allegations of indecent assault and gross indecency. The alleged incidents are said to have occurred between 1985 and 2008 and involve two women, referred to in court as witnesses A and B, who have both given evidence alleging abuse during their childhoods.
During his testimony at Newry Crown Court, called by his defence barrister Kieran Vaughan KC, Donaldson became emotional at points. When directly asked by his lawyer if he accepted any of the allegations made by the two complainants, he responded with a definitive “No”.
The court had previously heard about a letter Donaldson wrote to witness A in June 2020, expressing “regret” over “hurt, pain and distress I have caused”. However, the defence has maintained that this letter does not relate to any alleged abuse, but rather to a separate matter. Donaldson read extracts of the letter to the court, stating it “absolutely not” referred to incidents of abuse and was not the reason for its writing.
Addressing allegations from witness B that she was raped by him, Donaldson told the court: “It just didn’t happen. I am absolutely crystal clear about that. It is not something I would ever have done. It is just simply not true.” He further rejected any suggestion that his wife, Eleanor Donaldson, 60, had witnessed any abuse without intervening, asserting she “would have been very angry, she would have intervened immediately.” Eleanor Donaldson, who denies several charges of aiding and abetting her husband’s alleged offending, has been judged unfit to stand trial on mental health grounds and is instead facing a trial of the facts.
Donaldson recounted the shock of being arrested at 6am in 2024, stating he and his wife had “no idea this was coming.” Under cross-examination regarding his wife’s alleged knowledge of the abuse, Donaldson reiterated that there was no abuse and therefore “there was nothing to know.” He added, “There is absolutely no way Eleanor would have agreed, been party to, consented to anything of that kind of nature. That just did not happen, it simply did not happen.” The trial is ongoing.