'You are controlling and manipulative. It's how you behaved to Lisa, it's how you behaved to Mairead'

MICK Philpott was accused in court of being "controlling" of women, "manipulative" and that he "killed" his own children.

Prosecutor Richard Latham QC told Philpott: "This case is all about you wanting your own way."

Philpott said: "No, I don't want my own way. I thought this case was about who killed my children."

Mr Latham came back: "But you know who killed your children, you killed your children."

"No, I didn't," said Philpott.

Mr Latham said Philpott had tried to make his wife, Mairead, lie to frame Adam Taylor for starting the fire, which he denied.

"You are a highly manipulative man aren't you?"

"No," said Philpott.

Mr Latham put it to Philpott that Mairead had been "reluctant" to engage in sexual activity with family friend Paul Mosley in the hotel room.

"Yes, she was," said Philpott.

"And you gave her a task, didn't you?"

Mr Latham read out an extract from secret recordings made in the hotel.

"When he (Mosley) comes back, you kiss him and keep kissing him while I come back from my fag. Oi, make it pretty good."

"You were telling her, weren't you?" said Mr Latham.

"No, asking her, and I know I shouldn't have. I know I shouldn't have."

Mr Latham said: "That's how you treated women, isn't it?"

"No."

"They jumped at your command, didn't they?"

"No."

Mr Philpott said to Mr Latham: "You are trying to paint me as black as can be. What are you trying to say about me, I'm controlling?"

"Yes, you are controlling," replied Mr Latham, "It's how you behaved to Lisa, It's how you behaved to Mairead, it's how you behaved to your previous partner isn't it? It's over and over again."

"No," responded Philpott, "I admit I have done a lot of things wrong, especially having two partners."

Mr Latham told him he was not fussed about him having two partners.

Philpott denied knowing the hotel room had been bugged.

Asked why he was recorded saying: "It's all camera-ed up. There's all cameras in here. Shakey, don't say anything."

Philpott said: "That was said as a joke. You have taken it out of context."

Mr Latham said that when Mairead returned from her "significant witness interview", Philpott had been asking her questions about what she had said about the fire.

Mr Latham read the extract of the recording: "What did you say to them? Tell me what you said to them about how many times I went up the ladder."

"You were concerned about what she had said," said Mr Latham. "You were not fussed about whether she mentioned dogging (sex in public), you were fussed about the detail of the fire, weren't you? That's what you were fussed about, whether she was sticking to the story about the fire."

Philpott replied: "No, there was no story to stick to about the fire. It wasn't troubling me at all, I was just asking straightforward questions."

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