A vulnerable woman has described how she thought she was going to die when she was allegedly raped, strangled and beaten by an 'evil' serial sexual predator. Simon Levy, 40, is accused of violently assaulting her in January last year, months before he is said to have murdered Carmenza Valencia-Trujillo, 53, and Sheryl Wilkins, 39.
The 'predatory serial offender' targeted vulnerable women 'thinking that he would get away with it' after carrying out 13 sex attacks dating back to July 2018, the court has heard. Sheryl died in August last year, after Levy had been arrested and released by police in relation to Carmenza's murder.
Attack in Car Park
In a videoed police interview played at Levy's Old Bailey trial on Tuesday, the woman wiped away tears as she described being attacked in a car park in Tottenham, north London. She said: 'I would not think this man would be so evil. I believe I’m going to die. I couldn’t believe…I will never forget the smell of his hands, salty, smelly.'
The woman was 'left for dead' behind a wall in the same location where Levy would allegedly go on to murder Sheryl, the court has heard. The alleged victim said she was doing sex work to feed her drug habit when she saw a man she knew locally.
She said: 'There was this black man standing and he was holding a few £10 notes in his hands and because I know his face from previous years – I used to live near his address – so he said ‘hello’ to me. I replied back: ‘Hello.’ I offered him business – sex in exchange for money. He said: ‘Yeah, come come come.’
Violent Assault
The man, who had a dark rucksack, jacket and sunglasses, went with her to the B&M car park where she asked for cash up front, the court heard. 'I asked: ‘Can I have money please.’ He said: ‘What money?’ I said: ‘I provide a service, you pay me.’ He put his hand around my neck for a kiss. I said: ‘Can I have the money please?’
Instead of giving her money, he proceeded to put his hand on her neck, swung his arm under her leg so she fell and then 'jumped' on her with 'all his weight', the court has heard. She went on: 'From that moment I believe I have a broke clavicle from him so my shoulder is broken. I hit my head on the ground so I was a bit dizzy. He put his arms over my face. I couldn’t believe. I was kicking my legs under him and I am fighting for my life.'
The woman said she managed to turn on to her stomach before he sexually assaulted her. She told the interviewer she thought she was going to die as her attacker covered her nose and mouth and stuck his fingers in her mouth. He told her he had money and would take her out for dinner and to be quiet, she said. She recalled twisting and moving around before she fell unconscious.
Aftermath and Identification
When she awoke, her body was 'hurting' and she was bleeding, she said. 'I’ll never forget his f****** face,' she told the officer. Immediately after the attack she told a friend what had happened, as well as warning other sex workers who were nearby, she said. Four days later she told police she had been raped, but was not well enough to be interviewed at the time because she was withdrawing from drugs. The court heard she had a crack cocaine and heroin addiction at the time that cost £150 per day.
The woman, who suffered a broken shoulder, went on to pick out Levy in an identity parade, the court was told. Defending, Siobhan Grey KC asked her on Tuesday whether she was trying to avoid spending the weekend in police custody when she first told officers about the alleged rape in January. She was arrested for breaching a community order on January 25, but told police she was going to hospital to get treatment for a broken collarbone. Ms Grey asked: 'Were you making up an account about something bad happening to you so that they would not take you to the police station and would take you to the hospital?' The woman replied: 'No, that’s not correct.'
She told jurors that she could not remember refusing a police request to create a 'body map' of any injuries she had sustained. Levy allegedly went on to kill Carmenza in March and Sheryl in August last year during the course of sexual encounters.
Charges and Previous Convictions
Levy, of Beaufoy Road, Tottenham, north London, has pleaded not guilty to the two women’s murders. He has further denied two charges of rape, grievous bodily harm with intent, and non-fatal suffocation against the surviving woman, who cannot be identified for legal reasons. The prosecution told the court on Monday that Levy has previous convictions for sexual assault. Jurors heard he was convicted of two sex attacks in 2018, and more recently of 11 counts of sexual assault after a trial in February this year. The trial continues.
