A 38-year-old man appeared at Ipswich Crown Court today charged with a catalogue of a dozen sex crimes against a young girl.John Ingham, of Mottingham, London, but formerly of Ipswich, pleaded not guilty to all the charges including four allegations of rape on the girl who is aged under 16.

By Colin Adwent

A 38-year-old man appeared at Ipswich Crown Court today charged with a catalogue of a dozen sex crimes against a young girl.

John Ingham, of Mottingham, London, but formerly of Ipswich, pleaded not guilty to all the charges including four allegations of rape on the girl who is aged under 16.

Ingham also faces four charges of indecent assault and a further four counts of gross indecency, all on the same girl.

Outlining the case against Ingham, prosecuting counsel John Butcher told the jury the alleged assaults, which included forcing the girl to have oral sex, took place between June 1, 2001 and February 1, 2002.

Mr Butcher said the girl would be giving evidence today via the video link which included a recording lasting just over an hour of the youngster's original police interview.

He said that on June 25, 2001 the girl had complained to her parents that her private parts were sore. They took her to a doctor who believed at the time it may have been an infection.

Mr Butcher said in April this year the girl told her mum she had been the victim of an assault and the police were contacted.

He said: "We will hear during the course of the interview, the girl will say the first time it happened he started doing all those things, he made me lick his private bit and he put his private bit inside me."

Mr Butcher alleged that Ingham told the girl no one would believe her if she said anything about the assaults.

She told police she was assaulted ten to 15 times a week, sometimes two to three times a day.

Mr Butcher said on April 24 this year a medical examination revealed there was evidence of a penetrative injury to the girl.

"What she will say to you will be that these assaults were regular and continuous for about a five month period.

"After these allegations had been made the defendant was arrested on May 16 at an address in south east London. He was taken to Ipswich police station.

"He denied at every stage the allegations made against him."