Gay squatter ‘attacked by three people’

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A gay man who was squatting after becoming homeless was subjected to an hour-long attack by his ex-lover, a former X-Factor auditionee and another man, a court has heard.

Getreading.co.uk reports that Keiran Dulai was beaten with a TV set, computer and DVD player and hit with a curtain rod at the flat he was staying at in Reading town centre on April 24th last year.

His former lover Jonathan Wicks, 2007 X-Factor contestant Kim Marrero and another man, Neil Warner, were charged with carrying out the attack.

Wicks is pleading guilty assault, criminal damage and theft.

Warner denies actual bodily harm, two counts of criminal damage and racially aggravated assault and Marrero is denying one count of assault and another of criminal damage.

Prosecutor Lisa Goddard told Reading Crown Court that all three knew the victim and that an incident had occurred between Mr Dulai, Wicks and a person known only as ‘CJ’ the day before.

Mr Dulai, who became homeless after disagreements with his family over his sexual orientation, has alleged the trio bombarded him with homophobic and racist insults and poured detergent on him.

In court this week, he said: “They called me all the names under the sun that anyone could.

“I felt scared for my life.

“It was demeaning in a way because of the fact that my sexual orientation and my racial background was being abused.

“Them throwing detergent over me made me feel dirty.

“I didn’t feel like a human being. I felt like an animal or something.”

The trial continues.

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