A TEENAGE victim of an alleged rape will have to re-live her ordeal for a second time after police in Pembrokeshire messed up her video interview.

It was the second time a judge at Swansea Crown Court has criticised the way Dyfed-Powys Police has dealt with alleged victims off serious sex crimes.

In the latest case, Judge Keith Thomas, the most senior resident judge, said the officer who monitored the interview should be sacked.

Those making allegations of a sexual nature are allowed to make a statement to police in a comfortable and secure environment, which is video taped and placed onto a DVD.

Later, if the alleged attacker is traced and put on trial – possibly years later – that DVD is played to the jury and becomes the victim’s evidence, without her having to repeat her story in person.

But Swansea Crown Court heard that the interview of a teenager who complained of being raped when she was a child had been handled so badly the DVD was useless.

Judge Thomas said it was so poor he would not allow it to be played to a jury.

Instead, she will have to re-interviewed.

Carina Hughes, prosecuting, said at one stage the camera was not even focused on the victim.

“It is completely unfair because it’s not her fault, but the DVD is not acceptable,” she added.

The poor audio was also an issue, said Miss Hughes.

Sex assault victims are supposed to be interviewed by a trained officer with a second officer monitoring the process from a different room.

Judge Thomas said he was not sure that anyone had bothered to monitor this particular interview but if he or she had then they should be sacked.

“There’s absolutely no control over the recording. They (the police) must get a grip.”

He also slammed the police for questioning the victim for one and half hours about a single allegation.

Judge Thomas said the next interview must be completed within 30 minutes or he would want an explanation ‘as to why he or she is incapable of carrying out a simple instruction’.

He said: “I cannot understand how any trained officer could think it is appropriate to question a [girl of this age] for ninety minutes.

“The new tape must take only thirty minutes maximum,” he added.

It is not known where the interview was conducted.

In 2014 another judge at Swansea Crown Court criticised Pembroke Dock police who left a window open during an interview with a rape victim. The sound of passing traffic drowned out her testimony and she had to give live evidence in court.