Illicit and disturbing images shown during trial against Cambridge equestrian

NZ Herald·

17 Nov, 2020 12:46 AM4 mins to read

Cambridge woman Laken Rose, pictured with her former partner Andrew Williams, is defending 61 sex act charges.

Warning: Explicit details

Dozens of illicit and extremely graphic videos and images have been shown in court as the Crown puts its case against a Cambridge equestrian facing 61 charges in relation to child sex acts.

Laken Maree Rose, 31, is defending the charges at Hamilton High Court which include attempted sexual violation by unlawful sexual connection, indecent assault on a child under 12, rape, inducing an act on a child under 12 and making and being in possession of objectionable material.

The alleged offending happened on young girls aged between three and 14 and between 2014 and 2019. The trial is being heard in a judge alone trial heard by Justice Matthew Muir.

The majority of sexual acts were performed by her then-partner Andrew Williams, who yesterday pleaded guilty to 56 charges, and were filmed on a range of devices including an Apple Mac and iPhone found at the couple's Cambridge home in March last year as part of a search warrant.

The second morning of the trial focused on footage of acts taken by two of the girls, aged 4 and 8, early last year. Rose faces 16 charges including rape, attempted sexual violation by unlawful sexual connection, indecent assault on a child under 12, inducing an act on a child under 12 and making and being in possession of objectionable material.

A complaint about what took place was lodged with Police in March 2019 and resulted in a search warrant of Williams' and Rose's Cambridge property where the devices were seized and hundreds of images and videos were uncovered and revealed other sexual acts on other girls.

As part of the evidence, Crown prosecutor Anna Pollett produced dozens of disturbing videos and images showing how the couple played with the girl and enticed her to expose her genitals to the camera - with Rose at one stage asking the girl to show her the warts on her foot - while filming the girl's lower regions.

A number of the explicit images of Williams sexually abusing the young girl - which appear to be still shots of the footage - were found on Rose's iPhone

One video shows a naked Rose telling the 4-year-old girl to put her bum up as they crawl around the bed "because we're hunting, this is how cats hunt".

In others, only Rose's voice can be heard being friendly with the girls while she is filming the acts.

Rose's lawyer Philip Morgan cross-examined witness Sharleen Ashdown who works in the child protection department for Police and had been tasked with analysing all the videos and images. He quizzed her on certain dates the videos were taken and their locations and whether she was sure they were all in the same place.

He also ascertained that the four different videos of the 4-year-old were taken on the same day and appeared to be filmed by Williams with his left hand.

On Monday, Williams pleaded guilty to 56 charges of child sex acts to seven girls including rape, sexually violating young girls, indecently assaulting children under 12 and making and being in possession of objectionable publications in Hamilton High Court. He was remanded in custody and is to be sentenced on February 26.

Rose pleaded to four relating to offending on a teenage in 2014 and 2015.

The trial continues.