A nun accused of child cruelty broke down in tears in court yesterday as one of her alleged former victims was giving evidence.

Witness Anne Montgomery, pictured below, told Aberdeen Sheriff Court that she hated open doors or windows in her house because she was scared Sister Alphonso would get to her.

She told the court: "I cannot stand doors being open - I hate doors being open. I don't want Sister Alphonso coming in."

The trial against Marie Theresa Docherty was stopped for almost 20 minutes to allow the nun to compose herself.

Docherty, 58, known as Sister Alphonso within the Catholic order of the Poor Sisters of Nazareth, denies 23 charges of incidents of cruelty towards children.

Giving evidence, Miss Montgomery, 35, of Chesters Court, Bonnyrigg, said she was taken to Nazareth House in Lasswade, Midlothian, as a baby.

Docherty, the court heard, looked after the group of about 25 youngsters of which Miss Montgomery was part.

Miss Montgomery accused the nun on beating her over not folding clothes properly.

"She gave me a beating, (using her) hands and fist, punching me and hitting me. I ended up kneeling on the floor in the other room," she told the court.

She was also beaten after being caught fighting with another girl in the playground.

"It was the worst beating I ever got - she hammered me (with) her fists (and was) punching me," Miss Montgomery said.

She also described a further incident which she remembered happening to her sister, Grace.

Choking back tears, she said: "Grace had stolen a sweet or something and Sister Alphonso came into the dining room with one of the sweets. Grace's head was back and she put the whole bit of chocolate and rammed it down my sister's throat."

Miss Montgomery said Docherty did nothing when she saw Grace was choking on the sweet.

She said she was too frightened of Docherty to tell anyone, including her mother, brothers, social workers and teachers.

She also alleged that when the social workers visted Nazareth House, one of the nuns was always present, so she could not tell them about what was going on.

Under cross examination from defence agent Paul Cullen, QC, Miss Montgomery denied that she had colluded with other witnesses in the trial.

She also denied any knowledge of a £50,000 compensation claim from the Criminal Injuries Board which had been lodged on her behalf.

She refuted a suggestion from Mr Cullen that she had kept in touch with Docherty during her adult life, sending photographs of her children.

An earlier witness, Catherine Ennaaomaoui, had told the court that Docherty hit her on the head with a large book.

Mrs Ennaaomaoui told the court that she has had counselling as a result of nightmares and flashbacks about her days in the Aberdeen convent.

She denied, under cross examination from Mr Cullen, that she was motivated by money. She has also lodged a claim with the Criminal Injuries Compensation Board.

The trial continues.

This story was first published in the Aberdeen Evening Express