Ex-soldier jailed for raping woman he offered to take home on night out

A former soldier has been jailed for 14 years for raping a woman he offered to take home from a night out.

Sam Evans, 29, left the victim with a permanent medical condition after the attack on 2 July last year, in what a detective called “one of the worst cases” his force has dealt with.

The woman, who cannot be named for legal reasons, got into a taxi with Evans after she lost her phone.

The taxi ended up at his home in Devonport, Plymouth, where she asked him to call a second taxi after he told her he loved her, which made her uncomfortable.

Instead, he took her to his bedroom, locked the door, hit her across the face, pinned her to the bed by her throat and raped her.

He also knelt on her chest which restricted her breathing, held her throat until she passed out and urinated on her during the ordeal.

The court heard they had spoken on a dating app two months before the rape but the victim had rejected his attempts to meet up in person.

After the attack, the victim asked him to call a taxi but he refused. He drove her home, which she felt she had no choice but to let him do.

On their way back, he told her he “never wanted anyone to know” what he had done.

He also said he felt bad for her and asked whether she was going to say anything as he would be “in trouble”.

The victim’s mother noticed her facial injuries when she returned home but the woman did not want to call the police out of fear Evans knew where she lived.

She went to hospital that day as she was in extreme pain and told medical staff about the attack, who then called police.

She was treated for multiple injuries including concussion, a jaw injury, significant bruising to her chest, bruised arms and neck, and cuts and bruises to her mouth.

Ex-soldier was convicted in rape trial

The former soldier was arrested on suspicion of rape on 7 July while driving his van.

He was convicted last month of rape, two counts of sexual assault by penetration, non-fatal strangulation and assault causing actual bodily harm, following a trial at Plymouth Crown Court.

He was cleared of a second count of rape and a further count of assault by penetration.

Evans was also banned from contacting the victim for 25 years and will be on the sex offenders’ register for life.

After he was jailed on Monday, the victim said the attack had left her “scared and isolated”.

She added: “Sexual assault is more than just a physical assault; my body is the shell in which I hold everything that I am.

“A violation to someone’s body is a violation to the very core of a person. It is hard to put into words the irreparable damage Sam Evans has caused me.

“I would encourage any victim of rape and sexual assault to come forward so that together we can put an end to sexual violence. You are not alone, there is support waiting for you.

“I will not let what happened defeat me, this will be the making, not breaking of me.”

Be the first to get Breaking News

Install the Sky News app for free

‘Brutal and horrific ordeal’

Detective Constable Lee Tucker said: “I believe this is one of the worst cases of its kind that Devon and Cornwall Police has dealt with.

“The victim was subjected to a brutal and horrific ordeal at the hands of Evans.

“The level of premeditation he showed leading up to the incident, what he did on the night, and how he manipulated someone very vulnerable into gaining his trust, demonstrates that he is very dangerous.

“It seems clear that he was leading a double life. The impeccable serviceman who is well-liked and well-respected, and then the other side to him where he is using the dating app to prey on this vulnerable woman.

“Throughout the trial he showed no remorse and tried to manipulate the whole court as to his version of events which were proven to be lies.”

A Ministry of Defence spokesperson said Evans was no longer serving in the army following his conviction.

Read Entire Article