Jovhan Pascoe, 39, was jailed for life on July 13 for breaking into a vulnerable woman's flat and raping her as she slept on the sofa. Judge Timothy Smith described the attack as 'a real nightmare' and sentenced Pascoe as a dangerous offender, ordering him to serve a minimum of nine years and 10 months before being considered for release by the Parole Board.
Attack Details
Manchester Crown Court heard that Pascoe entered the woman's flat uninvited while she slept after meeting her boyfriend. She woke to find Pascoe semi-naked with his penis exposed. He grabbed her legs, forced himself on her, and raped her for 'some time'. The woman pleaded with him to stop, but he told her to 'F***ing shut up'. She was left terrified and closed her eyes, hoping he would leave.
After the attack, Pascoe wiped himself down and left. He then entered another woman's home, causing her to scream and shout before he ran off.
Victim Impact
In a statement, the victim said: 'I am writing this impact statement to explain the profound effect this crime has had on me. Since that night I haven’t slept properly. I have to sleep with a light and that's if I can get to sleep. Some nights I don’t sleep for days, because I’m terrified and nervous thinking someone going to walk in and hurt me again, the slightest noise makes me jump.' She suffered a laceration to her vagina requiring surgical treatment.
Defence and Sentencing
Pascoe denied rape, claiming the acts were consensual and that he entered the flat to 'test the waters' after watching pornography. He said he would have left if she screamed. The jury convicted him of rape. The court heard Pascoe had been diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia, but experts said it did not impact his offending. He also wrote a letter from prison asking the victim to withdraw her complaint.
Judge Smith said Pascoe had 'grotesquely abused' the woman and posed a high risk of harm. During sentencing, Pascoe held up hand gestures, swore at the judge, and said: 'I believe you have oversentenced me, dog. I'm going to appeal.'
Police Comment
Detective Constable Katie Geldard from Greater Manchester Police said: 'I’d like to thank the brave victim for coming forward and reporting this horrendous crime to us... Thanks to her courage, this dangerous sexual predator has been removed from the streets and put behind bars.'
