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The Guardian - AU
The Guardian - AU
National
Ben Doherty

‘I was afraid of what he might do’: woman tells court Ben Roberts-Smith punched her and threatened to burn down her house

Ben Roberts-Smith leaves the Federal Court in Sydney, Tuesday, March 22, 2022.
A woman anonymised as Person 17 has told court that during a six-month affair with Ben Roberts-Smith he threatened her, punched her and pressured her into terminating a pregnancy. Photograph: Dan Himbrechts/AAP

Ben Roberts-Smith punched a woman he was having an affair with in the face, refused to take her to hospital when she pleaded for medical help, and then took pictures of her naked while she slept, the woman has told the federal court.

In an emotional two hours in the witness box, the woman, who has been anonymised before the court as Person 17, gave evidence about a tempestuous six-month relationship she had with the former SAS soldier, which she alleges was at times threatening and violent.

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