A 36-year-old man sexually assaulted a teenager half his age after getting into her bed while she slept, Kingston Crown Court heard on Monday.

Mark Wyatt, prosecuting, said that on February 10, James Ward had been out drinking with a friend in Kingston. That friend had a key to the 18-year-old victim's house and the two men returned from the pub to continue drinking there into the early hours of the morning. The victim, who gave evidence at the court from behind curtained screens, had spent the evening drinking at home with a close friend, who had left at about 11pm, and was watching television when the men arrived at the house.

According to Mr Wyatt, she went upstairs at about 1am, undressed down to her underwear and went to bed. She claims she was woken at 3.30am by Mr Ward who was lying in her bed, touching and rubbing her bottom. When she told him to get out of her bedroom, he asked her if she was sure before going back downstairs.

The jury heard that the victim, who was crying and hysterical, was then comforted by a family friend. Mr Ward, of Nevada Close,denies the charge, claiming that the victim had mistaken him for another man. The trial continues.