LYING was a "way of life" for a teen who claims she was raped and beaten by a man high on cocaine, the Old Bailey heard this morning.

A defence lawyer told the Oxford child sex exploitation trial the witness, who made the rape allegation against his client, was not reliable due to her "awful, abused, abusive, and desperate life".

Nine men deny involvement in a child sex ring in Oxford.

The complainant known as Girl 3 claims Bassam Karrar, 33, raped her at the Nanford Guest House in November 2006. She told the court he choked her, and urinated on her in the assault.

But Karrar's lawyer Mark Milliken-Smith, making his closing speech, said the girl had lied to police back in 2006 to avoid getting in to trouble after staying out all night and having consensual sex with is client.

He said: "Lying was a way of life and a means of coping."

And he said she had stuck to the lie and there were inconsistencies in her account, adding: "She is plainly muddled and unclear in her recollection - all of which is not surprising considering the life she led."

The barrister suggested a man staying at the Iffley Road guest house called 999 when he heard a woman getting beaten up in another room to Karrar and Girl 3.

He also suggested Girl 3 had also overheard the assault and made up her story around it.

The trial continues.

Nine defendants deny 66 charges. They are:

  • Kamar Jamil, 27, of Aldrich Road, Summertown, Oxford, denies five rapes, two charges of conspiracy to rape, one of arranging or facilitating child prostitution, and one of trafficking for sexual exploitation.
  • Akhtar Dogar, 32, of Tawney Street, East Oxford, denies five rapes, three charges of conspiracy to rape, two of arranging or facilitating child prostitution, and trafficking for sexual exploitation.
  • Anjum Dogar, 31, of Tawney Street, East Oxford, denies three rapes, three charges of conspiracy to rape, two of arranging or facilitating child prostitution, and trafficking for sexual exploitation.
  • Assad Hussain, 32, of Ashhurst Way, Rose Hill, Oxford, denies rape and two charges of sexual activity with a child.
  • Mohammed Karrar, 38, of Kames Close, Cowley, denies seven rapes, four charges of conspiracy to rape, two of trafficking for sexual exploitation, two of arranging or facilitating child prostitution, serious sexual assault, conspiracy to engage in sexual activity with a child, using an instrument to procure a miscarriage, and supplying a Class A drug to another.
  • Bassam Karrar, 33, of Hundred Acres Close, Cowley, denies three rapes, three charges of conspiracy to rape, two charges of arranging or facilitating child prostitution, and trafficking for sexual exploitation.
  • Mohammed Hussain, 24, of Horspath Road, Cowley, Oxford, denies three charges of sexual activity with a child.
  • Zeeshan Ahmed, 27, of Palmer Road, Wood Farm, Oxford, denies two charges of sexual activity with a child.
  • Bilal Ahmed, 26, of Suffolk Road, Maidenhead, denies sexual activity with a child.