An asylum seeker allegedly filming a woman being attacked by two men on a Sussex shoreline told the court he captured the footage to discourage the offenders and caution them they would kill her.

The three defendants – a 20-year-old from Egypt, a 25-year-old from Egypt, and a 26-year-old from Iran – stand accused of carrying out what prosecutors described as a cynical, predatory and callous attack.

The two foreign nationals are alleged to have repeatedly assaulted the woman on the beach in the early hours of a particular October 2025 date, with the younger Egyptian documenting the events, Hove Crown Court heard.

The court was told the woman had become separated from her group during a night out with friends, and the prosecution alleges the three defendants approached her while she was unsteady on her feet and alone.

In his testimony, the younger Egyptian stated he created three recordings to get the other two to stop their actions and to safeguard himself by documenting what transpired.

He informed the jury that before commencing filming, he attempted to intervene physically but received no reaction, the court was informed.

Through an Arabic interpreter, he stated he told the men their actions were forbidden and asked them to stop.

He described the situation as horrible and said it was the first time in his life he had witnessed such a thing.

He explained that from what he could see, even the girl appeared unable to breathe normally or take a breath.

When asked about his Arabic commentary in the footage, he clarified to the jury that he had told the pair God would expose them, meaning curse them for their actions, and that what they were doing would be shown.

He also stated in the recording that God would expose them and they would kill the woman.

The defendant said he tried to urge them to stop, but they did not respond. He tried to speak to them, but without avail he stopped.

At the time of the alleged offences, all three defendants were acquainted and staying at accommodation in a village close to Horsham that had received Home Office approval for housing asylum seekers, the jury was informed.

Earlier, the younger Egyptian told the jury he journeyed to the seaside location from his accommodation because he felt bored and just wanted to kill time.

The three men travelled to the town together after meeting at a bus stop and visited various shops.

The defendant stated the evening had no predetermined plan and he expected to be out for a few hours before returning, but stayed out throughout the night because no bus services operated until morning.

He did not remain with the other two for the entire night but came across them again along the coast.

CCTV footage shows the pair accompanying the complainant toward the beach.

The defendant said he observed them from afar and followed because they had come to Brighton together and he wanted to know what was going on.

As he trailed them along the beach he stated he could not judge what was happening with certainty but it might be several things.

Two of the defendants, from Cheshire and the village near Horsham, have each denied two counts of rape.

The third defendant, also from the village near Horsham, faces joint counts on all four rape charges as a secondary participant encouraging the rape by his actions at the scene, including filming it, and has entered not guilty pleas to all four charges.

He denies a fifth charge of sharing intimate films without the complainant’s consent.

The charge concerns an allegation that the younger Egyptian transmitted recordings of the alleged assaults to one of the other defendants’ phone via a messaging application shortly after the incident.

On Tuesday, he stated he swore to God he did not share those videos with anyone.

He said he did not know the video was already sent. He knew that the video was sent from his phone when he came to the court here from his barrister.

He added that during his police interview he had claimed to have deleted the videos himself, but he had no idea how somebody sent those videos to someone else.

He added that he believed the video was deleted once it was sent by someone else.

The trial continues.