Man brutally attacked woman and then filmed himself raping her

A rapist brutally attacked a homeless woman in the heart of Cardiff city centre, forcing her to strip naked before filming himself raping her.

Liam Stimpson, 24, had been celebrating his birthday before carrying out the “callous” and “sadistic” sexual assault. A court heard how he tripped her up, punched her and kicked her in the head after the rape.

During sentencing at Cardiff Crown Court on Monday (3 June), he was accused of completely degrading and humiliating her and stripping her of “what little dignity she had left”, Wales Online reports.

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The court heard that the defendant had been drinking vodka before meeting the victim. CCTV footage showed both of them walking to Bakers Row before returning to St Mary’s Street and parting ways.

However, the defendant continued to pursue the victim and attacked her as she entered an underpass. She suffered significant facial injuries and her right eye was swollen shut. Stimpson then ordered the victim to strip naked.

Passing sentence, Judge Jeremy Jenkins said: “You have recorded this incident for your own sexual gratification, as a kind of trophy to watch at your leisure or to show to others. It shows a woman who is naked, battered, bloody and in agony.”

The victim begged Stimpson not to hit her, but he continued the attack by demanding that she perform sexual acts. He told her he was the “boss” and she would do whatever he told her before he raped her. Judge Jenkins described the incident as follows: “Her behaviour was callous and at times bordered on sadism. Her voice sounded threatening.”

After the attack, the victim managed to escape, but Stimpson caught up with her and tackled her from behind, causing her to fall heavily to the ground. While she was on the ground screaming for help, the defendant punched her twice in the face and kicked her in the head.

He ran away while the victim sought refuge in a nearby pub, where a cleaner consoled her and called the police. The victim was taken to hospital where she was treated for several days for a broken nose, head injuries and wrist injuries.

In a victim’s personal statement read out in court by prosecutor Nicola Powell, the victim said: “I want to say this has destroyed my life. I can’t sleep at night, I can imagine everything and I see his face all the time. This has changed my whole opinion about men. I want this man to go to prison for what he did to me.”

“I’m worried he’ll do this to another woman. I’m scared that this man will be released from prison and will sexually and physically attack me again. This has really affected me. I can’t socialize at the moment, I want to be alone to block out what happened to me.”

Stimpson, of Uphill Road, Llanrumney, was found guilty of two counts of rape, performing a sexual act without a person’s consent and causing grievous bodily harm with intent. He pleaded guilty to possession of cannabis. The court heard the defendant had several previous convictions, including theft, attempted theft, attempted robbery and possession of a controlled drug.

Defending, Ruth Smith said her client deeply regretted the violence he used against the victim. She asked the court to consider the totality of the circumstances. The barrister said Stimpson has neurodiverse disabilities, long-standing symptoms of ADHD, a recently diagnosed autism disorder and was “self-medicating” with cannabis at the time of the offences. The defendant’s girlfriend is expecting a baby and the court heard he feared he would not be there to help her.

Judge Jenkins told the defendant: “This was not consent. This was a form of dominance on your part over her… You have not shown the slightest hint of remorse or compassion for your victim. You have forced the victim to relive the events of that night and the effect on her in the witness box is palpable…

“You degraded and humiliated her… and forced her to crawl like a dog while you filmed it. You completely humiliated her and took away her last bit of dignity.”

Stimpson, who became desperate in the dock, was sentenced to 15 years in prison, two-thirds of which he must serve in custody, made subject to a sex offender reporting requirement and given an indefinite restraining order.

After the hearing, Detective Inspector Katherine Barry of South Wales Police said: “Stranger attacks like this are extremely unusual in Cardiff but in Liam Stimpson we were dealing with a dangerous individual. The level of violence he used and the humiliation he inflicted on the victim was appalling. He is an absolute danger to women. We would like to thank the witnesses who came forward in response to the press appeal and those who bravely gave evidence. We would also like to express our thanks to the victim support worker who was an invaluable help to the victim and to the investigation.”

Rhianydd Jones, senior prosecutor at the Crown Prosecution Service, said: “This case demonstrates the extreme violence and disregard for human dignity shown by the defendant. We are grateful to the jury for their careful consideration and to the victim for her courage in coming forward, which led to these convictions.”