A woman who claims she was sexually assaulted more than three decades ago rang a friend in a distressed state after seeing her alleged attacker in Bury St Edmunds, a court has heard.

A friend of the alleged victim told a jury at Ipswich Crown Court on Thursday that she received a call from the woman in which she said: “He’s back.”

She said the woman told her that her alleged attacker had moved away but she had seen him in Bury St Edmunds.

The witness described the woman as being “quite distressed” and said she had later told her she had been sexually assaulted by him.

“She said he did horrible things to her,” she added.

Before the court is Ceridgwyn Gillham, 51, of The Street, Hapton, near Norwich, who denies 10 offences of indecent assault in relation to two schoolgirls.

The offences were allegedly committed between 1977 and 1984, when Gillham was aged between 11 and 18 and was living at The Manse in Cratfield.

Gillham allegedly touched the two girls inappropriately when they were as young as six and seven and got them to touch him sexually.

During police interviews Gillham denied the allegations.

The trial continues.