A 33-YEAR-OLD married father of three told a court that he had never sexually abused a young boy and his sister.

James King, of Highwood Court, Nailsworth, took the stand on Monday to give evidence as his trial at Gloucester Crown Court entered a third week.

He told the jury that a falling-out led to accusations being levelled at him.

King is alleged to have abused a boy between the ages of ten and 12 and a girl aged between six and 12.

He said the accusations were ‘completely untrue’.

King has pleaded not guilty to six sexual offences against the boy between January 1998 and January 2001. Two of the charges are indecent assault, two are indecency with a child and two of the charges are rape.

King has also denied eight offences against the girl between August 1996 and February 2004.

Six of those charges are of indecent assault and two are of indecency with a child.

Addressing King, defence solicitor Sarah Waters asked: “Have you ever acted inappropriately with the boy, sleeping in the same bed, hugging and kissing him?”

King replied: “Never.”

Ms Waters then asked: “Did you get into the girl’s mother’s bed, act inappropriately and sexually touch her?”

King said: “Never.”

Giving evidence, King said: “I had a close relationship with the family, and with the children, whom I regarded like my brother and sister."

The trial continues.

“But one afternoon in 2003 the boy accused me of molesting him. We were in the social club at the time and everybody heard.

“I got really upset as I had felt part of their family for years and on many occasions I had taken the children away from incidents of domestic violence at their home.

“I was very angry and upset and went outside the club, where the boy’s mum came out and reassured me that she knew I had done nothing wrong.

“But things calmed down and I continued to go to the club. It was never mentioned again.

“But when I started seeing my girlfriend the children’s mother wanted me to give her up. There was some bad history there.

“But I chose to keep seeing my girlfriend and then the children’s mother’s partner went mental. He smashed into my car and tried to run my dad down. It was horrific.

“By 2003 we were no longer friends and then the girl made a similar accusation … that I had molested her.

“I had had enough and wanted nothing more to do with them but the girl kept coming up to me in the pub and offered to buy me a drink.

“Eventually she admitted she was an attention-seeker like her mother, we talked and things were okay again.”