A YOUNG woman woke up to find a drug dealer raping her after a night out, a court heard.

The woman, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, had been out with a friend in Brighton.

Together they had bought drugs from Jing Jiang, 45, during a night partying at Shooshh Nightclub.

They had wanted to take cocaine, but were given ketamine, a court was told.

After clubbing, he drove the women to a secluded spot overlooking Brighton where the women said they became drowsy.

The woman’s friend woke up to find Jiang attempting to rape the woman.

The friend tried to raise the alarm but was driven home.

Then Jiang took the woman back to his flat above the China Inn takeaway in Portland Road, Hove.

She awoke naked to find him on top of her.

This week Jiang is on trial at Hove Crown Court for attempted rape and rape in May 2016.

Amy Packham, prosecuting, opened the case to the jury and told them: “You will have to consider whether she was consenting, or whether Jing Jiang believed she was consenting and that his belief was reasonable.

“If she was unconscious or asleep, she can neither consent, nor would it have been reasonable for Jing Jiang to believe she was consenting.

“He didn’t even know her.”

Ms Packham told the jury that the victim had no memory of the time when she took a second dose of drugs in the car in East Brighton until she awoke with her clothes off in Jiang’s bed.

Both women, at the time aged 19 or 20, had gone to a funfair at The Level earlier in the day, and had drinks in Kemp Town before going to the nightclub.

There they met Jiang, a Chinese national formerly of Surrey Street, Littlehampton, and took drugs in his car.

After the nightclub closed, they both got a lift with Jiang and he drove to a secluded spot where the group took the class B drug ketamine.

Ms Packham said the woman’s friend awoke to find Jiang in the back seat with the woman and his trousers were down.

The friend tried to get into the driver’s seat to start the car but Jiang took control and drove her home.

Jiang then drove off with the woman still in the car before the friend on the pavement could react, the court heard.

The next day, after sleeping, the woman reported the incident to the police, who launched an investigation, including tests on her body which found Jiang’s DNA.

He denies the charges, the trial continues.