AN osteopath accused of sexually assaulting male patients confided to a colleague that if they interviewed one particular patient he would be going to prison, a court was told.

Steven Paine, who was an assistant to Stephen Milward at the practice in Atherton, told a jury yesterday that Milward made the admission to him when he told him that the police had paid a visit.

Officers raided the offices at the Natural Therapy Clinic on August 18 last year when Milward was absent.

Mr Paine let them in and gave them the keys to Milward's desk and they took away various documents.

Mr Paine, who practised aromatherapy, and who is a magistrate, told Liverpool Crown Court that when Milward later arrived at the clinic he wanted to know where his belongings had gone.

Mr Paine told him that the police had been and taken them. He also told him that patients had gone to the police.

He said that Milward named one patient, a student, and said that if they spoke to him he would be going to prison.

Milward, aged 49, of Booth House, Bolton, has pleaded not guilty to 12 charges of indecent assault involving male patients between 1990 and 2002.

It has been alleged that Milward, who is married with children but is gay, assaulted them during the course of a particular treatment.

Miss Susan Klonin, prosecuting, told the jury that the remark Milward made to Mr Paine was "as clear and as frank an admission of guilt" as they could get. It was an admission made when his guard was down and which he did not expect to have repeated.

Proceeding