A man accused of a series of masked sex attacks on women faced an extra charge in court yesterday.

Timothy Din, 44, from Hartlepool, is now alleged to have struck in the homes of five women in Thornaby, Teesside. The new charge alleged that he burgled a house in the town with intent to rape on December 10.

He was already accused of a rape on November 23, 1999, and three attempted rapes on February 4 and 20, and March 19 last year.

Mr Din, of Yeovil Walk, Hartlepool, winced when he was told by the judge that he was remanded in custody for another two months.

A large crowd of his relatives were in the public gallery at Teesside Crown Court. He has not yet been asked to plead to any of the charges.

Franz Muller, QC, prosecuting, said that there was a delay in receiving the results of forensic tests from the Home Office laboratory at Wetherby.

Jamie Hill, defending, successfully applied for a QC to head Mr Din's defence team.