Stockport husband who admitted drugging, raping wife gives statement; co-accused Peers pleads guilty

Centre · 1A man in his 60s from the Stockport area of Greater Manchester, who has admitted drugging and raping his wife without her knowledge for more than 20 years, has made a long witness statement about "what he says happened", a jury at Manchester Minshull Street Crown Court was told on 6 October. 1 Centre · 1Judge Maurice Greene told jurors the statement had been disclosed to all defence lawyers and contained "a lot of detail", with "lots of pages and lots of documents" that counsel were going through carefully. 1 Centre · 1The husband cannot be named, to protect his wife's anonymity. He initially denied the charges but pleaded guilty last month to 60 offences, including rape and administering a substance with intent. He had been accused of inviting 13 other men to abuse her from 2018 until November 2025, and is no longer a defendant in the jury trial. 1

Mixed · 2On 7 October the husband appeared by videolink from prison and admitted a further rape and a sexual assault, both committed last summer, bringing his total to 62 guilty pleas; he will be sentenced later. 2 3 Mixed · 2The same day Sean Peers, 38, of Stockport, who had been due to stand trial, pleaded guilty to one count of assault by penetration, which BBC News dates to 15 September 2024. 2 3 Right · 1The Daily Mail reported that Judge Greene told Peers he would be subject to a notification requirement under the Sexual Offences Act, and that Peers was granted bail until sentencing. 3

Mixed · 2Keith Fotheringham, 59, a technician at the University of Dundee, had already pleaded guilty in February 2026 to four offences between 2023 and 2025: conspiracy to rape, conspiracy to commit assault by penetration, conspiracy to administer a substance with intent, and assault by penetration. He is on remand awaiting sentence. 3 1 Mixed · 2With Peers's plea, 11 men remain due to stand trial, according to the Daily Mail. They are aged between 29 and 74 and deny the allegations, which range from rape and attempted rape to conspiracy to rape and conspiracy to administer a substance. They include paramedic Jonathan Kirk, 43, former DJ Robert Stewart, 70, and former Taunton Football Club chief executive Karl Lindsay. BBC News's earlier report counted 12 remaining defendants before Peers changed his plea. 3 1 Mixed · 2The jury of nine women and three men, plus two reserve jurors, was sworn in in early September, but the case was delayed for legal and practical reasons. Jurors were asked to return on Monday 19 October, when the prosecution case is due to open; the Daily Mail said the trial is expected to last at least two months. 1 3

Right · 1Four defendants, Wallace, Kirk, Brougham and Keelan, have been granted bail; the others are in custody, according to the Daily Mail. 3