A 78-year-old Newport pensioner appeared in court today charged with the sexual abuse of three alleged victims.

Robert Wood, of Caerleon Road, is standing trial charged with 11 counts of indecent assault alleged to have happened over a number of years.

He denies all charges.

Today one of the alleged victims described how she was abused when she was aged 10 and at the beach.

She said he called her his girlfriend.

The alleged victim gave evidence at Newport Crown Court.

She said the regular abuse began when she was very young when she used to be invited into Wood’s garage to visit his pet birds.

She told the court: “He used to keep birds so the treat would be to go and see the birds.

“The door was shut.

“I never questioned it ever.”

The alleged victim also told the court about other incidents.

Now an elderly man, the prosecution say Wood was in his 20s when the offences began.

The victim recalled confronting Wood when she was a teenager.

She said: “I said if he ever tried it again I would tell, of course I had never made these kinds of threats before.

“He panicked. He tried to convince me not to. He chased me.”

She said she ran the distance of two fields before Wood caught up with her.

She said: “As I got to the stream I tripped. He caught up with me and he slapped me. I remember screaming at him and he pleaded with me. He started crying. I never told anybody after that.”

In cross-examination, defence barrister Huw Wallace asked the alleged victim about her memory given that the alleged abuse occurred many years ago.

He asked her: “It never happened did it?” But the victim replied: “Absolutely, it did.”

Proceeding.