A POLICEMAN has gone on trial accused of raping a young girl five times before deliberately wiping his phone, 'n hof gehoor.
James Ford, 31, works as a response officer for Hertfordshire Police and has been charged with 10 counts of sex offences against the same girl.
The alleged offences spanned late 2019 to late 2021 and were heard in Cambridge Crown Court.
The charges include four counts of rape of a child under 13, two of assaulting a child under 13 by penetration, two of sexual assault against a child under 13 and two of causing or inciting a child under 13 to engage in sexual activity.
Mr Ford, formerly of Bishop’s Stortford, has denied the charges.
Prosecutors also allege Mr Ford did an act tending and intended to pervert the course of justice when he “deliberately wiped his phone by factory resetting his Samsung mobile phone”.
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Prosecutor Isobel Ascherson told jurors that in a police interview Mr Ford denied the alleged offences.
She said he initially told police his phone reset had been “per ongeluk”, but later told them “he reset it because he was having an affair” with a woman.
Die verhoor, which is expected to last seven to eight days, gaan voort.