A SECURITY guard has denied raping a girl when she was 11 and having sex with another 13-year-old girl.

Paul McCann, aged 31, of Allerton Road, Widnes, has pleaded not guilty to 15 charges, including two counts of raping a girl when she was 11 and 12, between 2008 and2008.

He has also denied having sex with another girl when she was between the ages of 13 and 15, between 2009 and 2011, and being in possession of indecent photographs of a third girl when she was 17.

McCann, who has no previous convictions, told a jury at Warrington Crown Court yesterday he has never had a sexual relationship with either of the two girls.

When asked by defence barrister, Simon Berksen, if he had had any sexual contact with the youngest victim, he replied:”I have never had sex with her.”

He denied any sexual contact with the older girl but admitted: “I did get really close to her.”

He said they had developed a special bond since she was 12 and used to send text messages to each other on their mobile phones and communicate through Facebook.

He said she turned to him for advice and reassurance when she was upset but their relationship was purely platonic.

Simon Mills, prosecuting, said the offences only came to light when a love letter he sent to one of the girls was discovered.

Mc Cann, who works at a Runcorn warehouse as a security officer for Global Union, said kisses and ‘love you’ at the end of their messages were not a sign of any romance.

“It’s just the way we speak on Facebook.” he told the jury.

The trial continues.