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A woman was accused of lying about being raped by a high street pharmacy and was denied the morning-after pill.

The 24-year-old was asked a series of invasive questions following the incident before being denied the emergency contraception.

Ina horrific turn of events, the young woman discovered weeks later that she was pregnant with the attackers child and she was forced to travel to the UK to abort the baby.

Under Irish law, pharmacists can refuse to dispense the drug under “conscientious objection” meaning pharmacy staff can say no if they feel it affects their conscience.

(Image: Universal Images Group Editorial)

“The particular pharmacist told me: ‘If you are going to lie to me, I can't help you.”

“They can refuse you if they are having a bad day or if they don't feel right about it,” the young woman, under the pseudonym of Sarah, said.

Sarah hid the rape from her friends and family before finding out she was expecting a child.

She was forced to work to earn enough money to travel to England to terminate the pregnancy.

“About two-and-half months later, I discovered I was pregnant and I pretended it didn't exist until I couldn't anymore,” she told Neil Prendeville on Cork’s Red FM.

She continued: “I had to apply online for a termination in London. I phoned them and I had to go over to London for a series of consultations over the period of three days and it cost around €1100.

“The only thing I could think of was how to get it out of me, I would have done anything

“There was no way I was continuing on with that pregnancy, I didn't want to be pregnant

“I would like to have children on my terms, not on somebody's else's, and not like that.

Initially, Sarah tried to report her case to An Garda Siochana, but she was straight away asked if she had drink taken before a male Garda took her away to give a statement.

“As if that [drink] would justify what he had done?” she questioned.

“I was taken to a secondary room and it took me about 20 minutes to say the words ‘I was raped’ and that was the first very cold response that I received,” she explained.