Katie Price's ex said take it to grave, rape trial hears

Kieran Hayler, 39, is standing trial at Lewes Crown Court on three counts of rape and one count of sexual assault allegedly committed in West Sussex in 2016. He denies all charges. The complainant, who was 13 when the alleged offences occurred, broke down while a police interview was played for the jury. In the recording she admitted lying to her mother about what had happened, saying she “didn’t want her to think I was disgusting.” She told officers, “I thought it was my responsibility for ages,” and explained that she had told her mother Hayler had touched her but not characterised it as assault because she feared “maybe I’d led him on.” She said Hayler contacted her two or three years after the alleged incidents and told her, “You promised you won’t tell anyone? What we had was special – you better keep it to the grave,” adding that it might get her into trouble. The complainant recalled Hayler warning that the situation could end badly for her, although she said she never felt frightened of him. When asked how she felt after the three alleged rapes, she replied, “At the time I thought he really cares about me so he’s not doing anything horrible… because of the way he described it, he said it was a good thing.” She described taking “four showers a time after that” and said her mother noticed she was “always washing” and changing her underwear “several times” a day. “I definitely remember thinking he’s a lot older than me, is this something he should be doing?” she said. “I remember crying and wondering if it should have been happening.” After the video was shown, the complainant gave evidence in person from behind a screen. Asked if she recalled anything else, she described the third incident, saying Hayler had messaged her, “I love you, goodnight,” to which she responded, “I love you too.” In 2021 the complainant reached out to the NSPCC, which referred her to police and triggered the investigation. Hayler was first interviewed by officers in January 2022 and denied that any of the alleged events occurred or that any sexual activity took place. At the time of the alleged offences Hayler was married to media personality Katie Price. Their relationship ended in 2018 and they divorced in 2021. Hayler told the court that Price had “launched a campaign” against him following their split, and that the allegations form part of that effort. The court heard that the complainant is not related to either Hayler or Price. Price is expected to appear as a witness during the trial, which is scheduled to run for approximately one week. Proceedings are ongoing.