text: Edwin Mee denies a series of sex offences which complainants claim took place when he worked as as an Army recruitment sergeant in Croydon . An Army recruitment sergeant who served with the Special Forces in Iraq has denied sex attacks on 11 female cadets - saying they 'never happened'. Edwin Mee, 46, is said to have abused his position of power to abuse or rape 11 alleged victims while working at an Army careers centre in Croydon, south London. The Scottish officer - known as 'Jock' - allegedly carried out the attacks on women aged from 15 to their early twenties between October 2010 and September 2011. Taking to the witness box to give evidence at London's Southwark Crown Court today, Mee told jurors about his military career, and firmly denied the allegations. He branded one alleged victim - who says she became pregnant after he raped her - a 'time waster' and a liar. Lisa Wilding QC, defending, asked her client: 'The allegations against you are that in respect of two complainants, that you raped them, and in respect of the others that you touched them sexually, what do you say generally about those allegations?' Mee replied: 'That never happened ma'am.' Mee joined the army aged 24, and went on to serve tours of duty in Iraq - where he was attached to the Special Forces, and Afghanistan - where he was attached to a parachute regiment - and Bosnia, jurors heard. By the time the allegations against him came to light he had acquired the rank of sergeant, and he was suspended in 2011. The court was told that Mee was medically discharged from the Army in April 2014. He explained that his father had been an engineer in the Royal Navy, his mother an Army nurse, and that his step-brothers had also been in the Army. Lisa Wilding QC, defending Mee, asked him how he felt about his time in the Army. He replied: 'Everyone knows how I feel about the Army. My family served in it - the Army was my life, and if it wasn't for all this mess, I would still be there.' When arrested, Mee gave a prepared statement to police denying the allegations against him. Referring to one of the rape allegations, he said: 'I have never raped any person in my life.' He went on to deny each of the sexual assault allegations saying 'I did not sexually assault any person', when talking about each individual incident. However, giving evidence, Mee conceded that he would often swear in the recruitment office and shouted at recruits saying things like 'I'll rip your head off and s*** down your throat'. When asked why he was like this, he replied: 'If I felt they were trying to mess me about, if somebody missed an appointment. These are courses that are paid for by the British army. 'If someone missed an appointment I would get them on the phone and b****** them. At the time I just thought it was normal. It was just the way I spoke.' Mee said that the Army, from which he is suspended, is 'his life' and insisted the offences 'never happened' He further admitted that he would often make comments to 'threaten or intimidate' recruits because the Army is not a nine to five job and they needed to understand that they could lose their lives. But Mee also told jurors that he was 'protective' over his candidates and felt that he was in the best position to help them, occasionally 'cutting corners' to help them progress. He had a total of 565 candidates on his books while working at the recruitment centre. The court has heard that Mee targeted alleged victims by staying late at the careers centre to conduct after-hours interviews with applicants - in which he 'gauged their vulnerability'. One of the women, who is originally from Sierra Leone, claims she became pregnant after Mee raped her. He is accused of having threatened to halt her application at one point, telling her: ‘I am from the army, I can do anything’. But Mee denied her claims. He said: 'She was a time waster and she lied to me with regards to her application and medical condition.' 'She had a problem with her weight and I had to send her away, she was slightly overweight I believe,' he said. Giving evidence from behind a screen, the complainant told jurors Mee raped her after pretending to ring the Home Office to help secure her visa. Mee was working at an Army careers centre in Croydon, south London, when the alleged incidents took place . He dismissed her account that she believed he could influence her immigration status. 'I would say that is absolutely ludicrous and rubbish,' Mee told jurors. He further denied slapping her bottom, asking her to live with him and asking for sex on the telephone. 'Did you ever say "I will marry you if you don't get a visa",' asked Ms Wilding. 'No I did not,' replied Mee. Another complainant, aged 16 at the time of the alleged offence, says Mee asked to see the piercing in her stomach area the first time they met to discuss her application. She claims that he later slapped her bottom and, when she complained, told her: 'It's you who needs the Army.' At the time of the alleged sex attacks, he was employed as a recruiting sergeant with the British Army at the Mitcham Barracks Army Careers and Information Office (ACIO) in Croydon. Mee, of Croydon, south London denies 17 counts of sexual assault, three rapes and one count of assault by penetration. Southwark Crown Court heard Mee was protective of his recruits and 'cut corners' to help them in their careers . Sorry we are not currently accepting comments on this article.
target: Recruiting sergeant accused of series of sex attacks in 2010 and 2011 .
  One victim says she became pregnant after she was raped by him .
  He denies all charges and tells a court the offences 'did not happen'
  In cross-examination, he tells jury that the Army was 'his life'