Teen pair accused of underground carpark rape returned for trial – Armagh I

Dungannon: Two teenagers are back in court over a terrible incident that happened in an underground car park. They’re accused of attacking a woman while one kept watch.

Mariano Luis Dos Martins, 18, and Alcino Soares, 19, are facing serious charges, including rape. This all went down on September 10, 2023.

Martins has an extra charge for trying to possess extreme pornographic material. Soares is also charged with sexual assault and stealing a SIM card from the victim.

In court, the prosecutor said there’s enough evidence to move forward, and the judge agreed. The two guys only confirmed their names and didn’t call any witnesses or speak up for themselves.

The judge has set their next court date for February 11, where they’ll face arraignment. The victim reported the attack to the police after it happened.

She was out with friends when the two guys approached her and led her to the empty car park. There, one of them attacked her while the other just watched and laughed.

The detective said Soares was pacing around, keeping an eye out, and even laughed while the assault was happening. At one point, the victim seemed completely out of it.

After the attack, she managed to get away, but Soares allegedly pulled her clothes down and assaulted her again. Martins even took a video of the attack on his phone.

Later, police found Soares after reports of him following women and filming them. He initially gave false details but later corrected himself.

They found DNA evidence linking him to the victim, but he insisted everything was consensual. Bail was denied, but he was released later by the High Court.

Martins was arrested a week later and is suspected of being the one who started the whole thing. He got bail mainly because of his age.

Both teens are claiming that everything that happened was consensual.