The Courier & Advertiser (Perth and Perthshire Edition)
Man denies charges of sexual assault
Aphotographer has gone on trial accused of sexually assaulting two children at his Perthshire home.
Clint Budgen is accused of assaulting the children, aged between three and six years old and 12 years old, between January 2016 and February 2019 and causing a third to hear a sexually explicit communication.
The 49-year-old denies all the charges.
Perth Sheriff Court was played video of a police and social worker interview with one of Budgen’s alleged victims, aged six at the time of the recording.
She said she regularly visited Budgen at his house.
The girl, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, said she enjoyed playing with his dog and watching cartoons on his TV.
When asked by Detective Constable Graham Layland, of the Child Protection Unit in Perth, if there was anything “not so nice” about Budgen, she said: “He rubs me between the legs a bit.”
She added: “I was in bed but I had trousers on. He doesn’t get naked, he just changes into his pyjamas. I got to snuggle with him.”
The court was also played video of a police interview with Budgen’s second alleged victim, who was then aged 13 but who was 12 at the time of the alleged attack. She said several children regularly went to Budgen’s house to play video games.
“I thought it was a bit weird,” she said. “Like, what the hell is it with all these underage people?”
On one occasion, she said Budgen asked her about her then boyfriend.
“He said ‘If you’re going to have sex with him, you should have sex before he turns 16. I was like ‘what?’”
The girl said he slapped her bottom.
“After the third time, I just sat down and gave him the biggest death stare of all time,” she said.
On another occasion, she said Budgen became visibly aroused while tickling her.
Another time, he showed her a photo he claimed to have taken of one of the other children’s mothers. She said: “He brought up these pictures (on his laptop) and he was scrolling through them. It was like porn, basically.”
Budgen, of Dunkeld Road, Perth, is accused of lying in bed with a girl, then aged between three and six years old, and rubbing her legs.
It is further alleged he slapped a 12-year-old girl’s bottom, tickled her, hugged her and showed her photos of a naked woman.
He is accused of using explicit language when asking her about sexual matters “for the purpose of obtaining sexual gratification, or of humiliating, distressing or alarming” the youngster and encouraging her to engage in unlawful sexual conduct.
Budgen is also accused of causing a third girl, then aged 11, to hear a sexual verbal communication.
All five charges are alleged to have taken place between January 2016 and February 2019 at his thenhome in east Perthshire. The trial continues.