As the foreman of the Crown Court jury announced their majority guilty verdict last Thursday, the family of 21-year-old Anthony West erupted in despair, with one man barging out of the public gallery with such ferocity he took the door off its hinges.

Trial Judge Derick Rogers called for court security staff to clear the public gallery such was the outpouring of emotion from West's family.

The eight men and four women on the jury had deliberated for five hours over two days before convicting West of rape by a majority verdict of 10 to two.

West himself looked stunned as he sat in the dock flanked by prison officers and was seen to shake his head and pull at his hair. Despite a bail application from defence lawyer Charles MacCrainor, West was remanded into custody and his sentencing was adjourned until early in the next court term, once impact and probation reports have been compiled.

Over the two week hearing the jury had heard that West, from Meadowbank Street in Belfast, scaled the seven-foot rear yard wall to the girl's house, went through the back door which he had previously opened, sneaked through her darkened house to her bedroom where she lay sleeping, and raped her.

Giving evidence to the jury, the woman, who cannot be identified to protect her identity and who was a teenager at the time of the attack on November 24 last year, said she had come home from a party and was in bed when West first called at 6.30am that morning. He went to the kitchen where he made them both a cup of tea and it was the Crown case that this was his opportunity to open the locked back door.

Despite his advances, which she spurned, West left in a taxi but before he returned to carry out the attack, the woman texted her friend saying West had called: "Anto f*** sake. Didn't think I would get rid of him. he wanted to stay. Dirty b****** but no chance. Didn't think he as going to give in but he did. Thank f***." The jury heard the girl went back to bed but was awoken to find West raping her.

West gave evidence on his own behalf and claimed the pair had had consensual sex.