The jury in the trial of a Lowestoft man accused of raping a woman in a car after offering her a lift home is expected to retire to consider its verdict on Friday (May 31).

Ajay Rana, 34, of May Road, Lowestoft, denies raping the woman on December 9, 2017.

Giving evidence during his trial at Ipswich Crown Court this week, Rana claimed that when he stopped his car she had asked him if he "wanted some fun."

He claimed they had consensual sex after she pulled him on to the passenger seat of the car where she was sitting and told him: "I know what you want. This is what you want."

He said that several days after having sex with the woman he saw a news item about a woman being raped in Lowestoft and had bought a one-way ticket to India on December 13.

He had later got a job on a ship and was arrested in Bilbao in Spain after a European arrest warrant was issued.

During his evidence Rana told the court he had worked in the Merchant Navy and had come to the UK in January 2017 to do a course at the East Coast Maritime College.

Rana told juror he was driving home when he saw the alleged victim stumbling along the road and offered her a lift.

The court has heard that on the night of the alleged rape the woman met an old friend during a night out in Lowestoft and went to a house party with his group.

She went back to the man's address until 5am and was walking home when Rana, who she had never met before, stopped and offered her a lift before allegedly raped her.

The woman ran to a nearby house, banging on the door to alert a woman inside, who said the alleged victim was "hysterical, freezing cold, crying and shaking."

After tracking the car to his housemate's address police identified Rana as their suspect after matching DNA from earphones left at his house to swabs taken from the woman.