Accused ‘rapist’ David Thorburn told an Old Bailey

Accused ‘rapist’ David Thorburn told an Old Bailey jury
that he was on a Scottish golf course at the time Lady Dawn
Kennedy claimed he was attacking her.

The 32 year old divorced wife of the Earl of Cassillis was
arrested after claiming that Mr Thorburn and two other men had
gang raped her on May 31, 1991
American-born Lady Kennedy, of Jodrell Road, Bow, denies
three charges of perverting the course of justice.

Mr Thorburn, general manager of an electronics company, of
Havannah Street, Poplar, said he was born in Ayr and always
tries to make a point of playing in the Tam O’Shanter Golf
Tournament which usually takes place over the first week in
June every year at the Bellisle and Seafield golf courses in
Ayr.

To make sure he got a practice round before the tournament
began, he left London on May 30 and drove through the night,
arriving at his mother’s house in Southfield Park, Ayr, about
2.

30 am on the 3lst.

The 14 handicapper – ‘I used to play off 9 handicap before
I went to live in London’ – said on the day of the alleged rape
he was in a foursomes match with his half brother, Stephen, and
two other men, both of whom had very low handicaps, at the
Seafield course.

His starting time in the morning was 7.

30 and he remembered
chatting to he official starter Mr David Chapman.

The court heard that his cast iron alibi led to the arrest
of Lady Kennedy.

The attractive blonde won a 70,000 pound settlement from
her multi-millionaire former husband, Lord Charles.

The couple used to live at the 50 bedroom Cassillis castle
and have two children, Lady Rosemary, 12, and Lady Alicia, 11.

She alleged she was raped on May 31, 1991, in a flat on the
Vaughan Estate, Diss Street, beathnal Green, by caretakers James
Cowan, 36, and Lee Thompson, 33, and by Mr Thornburn.

Mr Thompson told the jury her story was ‘absolute rubbish.

‘
Asked about 53 blue-movie videos found by police at his home, he
said that many of them were found by him when he was clearing
out rubbish at the flats at which he worked but a few of them
had been bought by him from mail order catalogues.

He bought them because he used to get a ‘bit bored’ sitting
around at home.

Sometimes he would watch them after his wife went to bed.

He denied a suggestion that he was running a sideline in
dirty films and that he had asked Lady Kennedy to help him
peddle them.

Mr Stephen Kamlish, defending Lady Kennedy, said that many of
the videos were of a sado-masochistic nature and included a series
called ‘Sex Slaves’ about the torture of women.

Other torture videos found at Mr Thompson’s home were
‘Piercing,’ ‘Bitch Busters,’ ‘Bizarre Punishment’ and ‘Extreme
Torture.

‘
Mr Thompson said he had ‘just flicked through’ those films
to see what they were about.

His preference was for films showing normal sex and in
particular he liked women to be dressed in stockings and suspenders.

One such film he had bought, which he held up in court, was
called Leather Fantasy.

He denied the suggestion that he ‘liked a good laugh at the
expense of coloured people’ but he agreed that he had in his
possession films called ‘Chocolate Kisses,’ ‘Chocolate Bananas’
and ‘Sweet Chocolate’ all of which featured coloured people.

Asked if he had raped Lady Kennedy, he replied: ‘I totally deny
it.

‘
And Mr Thorburn told the jury her accusations were
‘absolute nonsense and ludicrous.

‘
He insisted he played twice in Ayr on the day she alleges
he was attacking her.

The first he knew that something was wrong was two days later
after again playing golf in Ayr.

His mother had received a telephone call from London
but when he himself rang Bethnal Green Police Station the officers
there would not give him any details.

All they wanted to know was when he was returning
to London so that they could interview him.

‘I was very angry because I was on a golfing holiday and I
didn’t know what was going on,’ he said.

The next thing that happened was that two policemen
called at his mother’s house.

He was handcuffed and taken to Glasgow where he spent six hours
in a cell alone.

Then, still handcuffed, he was taken to Glasgow railway station
where two detectives from London took him back to London.

He was released after questioning in London.

He told the court that he was ‘angry and indignant’ at
what had happened to him.

Questioned by prosecutor Mr Waters he said that he had
heard that at one stage Lady Kennedy had been involved in
prostitution and had problems with drug addiction.

He told the court he knew James Cowan, who had also
been accused by Lady Kennedy of raping her, but he had never met
the third man she had named, Lee Thompson.

The trial cxontinues.

ENDS