A new Channel 4 documentary follows three women who, after decades, brought their rapist Martin Butler to justice. Laura Hughes and Lauren Preston, both 45, and Mary Sharp, 58, waived their anonymity to share their story after Butler was convicted of historic rapes.
Butler, a manipulative drug dealer in his mid-30s at the time, groomed and abused the women on a London estate in Ruislip in the 1980s and 1990s. He is now serving a lengthy sentence for the rape and buggery of Sharp in 1988, and was later convicted of the historic rape of an unidentified teenager.
The women’s bond formed after Hughes posted a Facebook appeal in 2018 calling for other victims of Butler to come forward. The post was shared 1,700 times in four days. Preston and Hughes provided bad character evidence at Butler’s trial, which ultimately led to his conviction.
Sharp faced multiple obstacles from the Crown Prosecution Service, which initially said there was insufficient evidence. She had to fight three times to proceed with the case. The women now support each other through a WhatsApp group called Sister Solidarity, describing their attacker as 'the same monster'.
More rape survivors are speaking out, following the example of Gisèle Pelicot, who said shame must change sides in rape cases. The documentary, inspired by an original Guardian article, airs this week on Channel 4.
