Newry, United Kingdom, July 3, 2024 (AFP)
Jeffrey Donaldson, former leader of Northern Ireland's main pro-UK unionist party, will face trial in September on 18 sex offence charges, including rape, a court was told on Wednesday.
Judge Eamonn King said there is "sufficient evidence" for the 61-year-old, one of the British province's best-known politicians, to be sent to trial.
Donaldson has previously said that he will "strenuously" contest the allegations.
The former UK parliament MP is facing one charge of rape, four counts of gross indecency with or towards a child and 13 counts of indecent assault on a female.
Donaldson arrived at the court separately from his wife and former parliamentary secretary Eleanor, 58, who is also facing five charges of aiding and abetting.
It was the first time either had been seen in public since their last court appearance in April.
The judge remanded the pair on bail conditions and told them to return to court on September 10 when their trial will be arranged.
"I am satisfied on the basis of the papers before the court that there is a prima facie case to answer," said King.
The two complainants, whose accusations span two decades between 1985 and 2008, cannot be named for legal reasons.
The politician resigned as leader of the Democratic Unionist Party on March 29 after he was charged by police.
A longtime player in Northern Irish unionist politics, Donaldson was first elected in 1997 and was the longest serving Northern Ireland MP.
Before the charges Donaldson had been expected to lead the DUP into the UK general election, which takes place on Thursday.
In May, Donaldson's lawyer confirmed he would not run for re-election.
Donaldson became DUP leader in 2021 before his party collapsed power-sharing at the Northern Ireland assembly in Belfast in February 2022 in protest at post-Brexit trade arrangements for Northern Ireland, which shares the UK's only land border with the European Union.
It argued that the trade terms -- agreed to avoid a so-called hard border with EU member the Republic of Ireland to the south and preserve peace after 30 years of sectarian conflict over British rule -- risked cutting Northern Ireland adrift from the rest of the United Kingdom.
Donaldson announced in February that the party had struck a deal with the government to break the deadlock, paving the way for the assembly to resume.
The resumption of power-sharing led to Sinn Fein's Michelle O'Neill making history by becoming Northern Ireland's first pro-Irish nationalist leader.

Sumber : AFP