Assault accused claims vendetta

A man accused of a string of offences against three of his former partners has claimed the women have banded together as part of a “vendetta”.

Jamie Doak told the court the women had become friendly in recent years and said that Auchterarder had a “smallminded, two-faced, small-town mentality”.

Doak, of Ruthven Street, Auchterarder, is accused of assaulting Julie Mailer between June 2001 and August 2005, assaulting Joanna Perrett between October 2006 and January 2008, and Joanna Chac between September 2008 and May 2014. All of the incidents are said to have taken place at various addresses across Perth and Kinross.

He is further accused of abducting Ms Chac in September 2012 at an address in Blackford and of behaving in a threatening and abusive manner towards her on various occasions between December 2010 and April 2015 at addresses across Perthshire.

A second charge of abducting Ms Chac and another of abducting Ms Perrett were dropped after a sheriff ruled there was no case to answer.

Doak said: “It’s quite clear that Ms Mailer has a vendetta against me.

“These women have all got together over the last two years, sparked by Ms Chac, and all clubbed together.

“My position is that these women have something against me. It’s all nonsense.”

The trial continues.