A man on trial for sexually abusing Joanne Young told police he was ‘just a young guy trying out new things’ and believed he had her consent, a court has heard. Connor Sanderson-Doyle, 32, of Swindon, denies charges of sexual assault by penetration and sexual touching relating to an incident in June 2016.
Sanderson-Doyle is one of four men facing trial at Winchester Crown Court accused of sexually abusing Mrs Young, who has waived her right to anonymity. Her husband, Philip Young, 50, has pleaded guilty to multiple charges of drugging and sexually abusing his wife over a 13-year period at their home in Swindon, Wiltshire.
Police interview details
The court heard that when Sanderson-Doyle was arrested at his home on May 22, 2025, he told police he did not have sex with Mrs Young, adding: ‘I remember this vividly, Jesus Christ.’ Prosecutor Sarah Jones KC said he told officers he had responded to an advert on Craigslist allegedly posted by Mr Young.
Sanderson-Doyle said he arrived at the house and went into a room where Mrs Young was ‘tied up and blindfolded’, as she had been in the online advert. He told police he was nervous and ‘started getting undressed… Maybe I touched her body a bit’. The court heard he wore a balaclava from his motorcycle helmet because he did not want to be identified in a video Mr Young was recording.
Claims of consent
Sanderson-Doyle said that as he began to perform a sex act on Mrs Young he got a ‘vibe she wasn’t enjoying it or was not comfortable’, then said that he stopped, got dressed and left. He also said to Mr Young that ‘I don’t think she’s feeling it,’ the court heard.
Sanderson-Doyle told police: ‘I just thought I was young and maybe not reading the room right. I thought I had her consent, I didn’t know she was drugged, I just thought I was doing a s*** job.’ He also said he heard Mrs Young say ‘No’ at one point but claimed he believed she wanted him to do something different rather than stop completely. He said he believed Mrs Young was consenting because she ‘just seemed relaxed’, and that because of his communication with Mr Young, he believed he had the consent of both of them. ‘It’s upsetting this man has done this and involved me in it,’ he said.
Other defendants
Another defendant, Norman Macksoni, told police he had made contact with Mr Young through the Fab Swingers website, the court heard. Macksoni, 48, a logistics manager from Sharnbrook, Bedfordshire, said Mr Young told him that he and his wife both wanted to take part and that it was ‘one of their fantasies’. He told police that when he entered the bedroom, Mr Young sat next to his wife and said: ‘He’s here, he’s ready for you.’ Macksoni claimed the sex was consensual. ‘I wouldn’t be sleeping with someone who wasn’t coherent, I wouldn’t do that,’ he told officers. ‘That’s not what Fab Swingers is about.’ He denies one charge of rape.
The other defendants on trial are Richard Wilkins, 62, of Swindon, who denies one count of rape and one count of assault by penetration, and Mohammed Hassan, 38, also of Swindon, who denies one count of sexual touching. A sixth defendant, Dean Hamilton, 47, of Street, Somerset, has admitted one charge of assault by penetration, two counts of sexual assault and one count of rape. Mr Young has pleaded guilty to 56 charges. Those who have admitted offences are due to be sentenced at the end of the trial. The case continues.
