Paddy Jackson and Stuart Olding trial: 'Rape a game of power and control,' complainant tells court

The woman sobbed and wiped away tears as she told Belfast Crown Court the reason she had decided to report the alleged attack.

She said: "The more I thought about it, rape is a game of power and control.

"They rely on your silence. The only way you take the power back is when you actually do something about it.

"I may be preventing it happening to someone else.

"It could so easily have been my friends outside Ollies, it could have been my sister outside.

"It's the best decision I have made."

Stuart Olding, 24, and Paddy Jackson, 26, are accused of raping the same woman at a property in south Belfast in June 2016.

Jackson faces a further charge of sexual assault.

Both men deny the charges.

Two other men have also been returned for trial on charges connected with the alleged incident on June 28 2016.

Blane McIlroy, 26, from Royal Lodge Road, Ballydollaghan, Belfast, is accused of one count of exposure.

Rory Harrison, 25, from Manse Road, Belfast, is charged with perverting the course of justice and withholding information.

Later, the woman told the court: "It's not OK.

"No one should ever have to go through what I did.

"People just can't get on like that.

"I am not going to stand for it."

Throughout proceedings the four defendants, who arrived at court separately, sat alongside each other in the dock.

Jackson, who was dressed in a navy blazer, jumper and open-neck shirt took notes.

The public gallery was packed to capacity.

The case, which is in its third day, is scheduled to last for five weeks.

It is being heard before Judge Patricia Smyth and a jury of nine men and three women.