Jeffrey Donaldson, the former Democratic Unionist party (DUP) leader, is appealing his conviction for rape and other sexual offences against two children. His legal team filed documents with the court of appeal in Belfast on Friday, according to his solicitor, John McBurney. If granted, the appeal will add yet another twist to a case that has stunned Northern Ireland and plunged the DUP into crisis.

A jury at Newry crown court found Donaldson, 63, guilty last month of 18 sexual offences against two victims who were children at the time of the abuse, which occurred between 1985 and 2008. Donaldson denied all accusations, which included one count of rape plus gross indecency and indecent assault. He is currently held at Maghaberry prison in his former parliamentary constituency of Lagan Valley in County Down, awaiting sentencing in September. Trial judge Paul Ramsey indicated that a custodial sentence is inevitable and will be lengthy.

Donaldson's arrest in 2024, followed by the four-week trial and verdict, marked a sensational downfall for an establishment figure who dominated unionism and played a key role at Westminster during post-Brexit negotiations over Northern Ireland's position in the UK. The grounds for appeal potentially include an unsuccessful attempt by Donaldson's lawyers to separate his criminal trial from the trial of the facts of his wife, Eleanor Donaldson, as reported by the BBC. Deemed unfit to stand trial on mental health grounds, the 60-year-old faced a trial of the facts, which can test evidence but not result in a criminal conviction, and was found to have aided and abetted her husband's offending.

Since the verdict, senior DUP figures have gone public with claims of Donaldson being a drunken sex pest during his long political career - stories that contradict his previous image as a God-fearing teetotaller in line with the legacy of the party's late founder, Ian Paisley. The party has set up a review to establish what people knew about the former leader's behaviour, led by Jim Gamble, a former senior police officer. The Stormont assembly has also launched a review into alleged abuse or inappropriate behaviour by Donaldson during his tenure as an MLA from 2003 to 2010.