A pervert sexually assaulted an unconscious woman at a hostel after he locked the door and took advantage of her in a sickening attack. The victim had no recollection of the assault but it was caught on the hostel's CCTV.
Andrew Price, 44, carried out the attack on his victim, who has lifelong anonymity, in the communal living room of a hostel in Cardiff. Two witnesses were present just before the assault and described the victim as "intoxicated" and "tired".
The defendant arrived and sat on a sofa and was drinking. Shortly later he moved across to the sofa the victim was siting on and pushed up against her.
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Prosecutor Tim Evans told a sentencing hearing at Cardiff Crown Court on March 25 the victim was "barely moving" and was either asleep or unconscious. At that point Price began touching her but there was still no response
The two witnesses left the room at which point Price began touching his victim between her legs over her clothing and touched her breasts. He then proceeded to put his hands down her trousers and caressed her face. Mr Evans said: "It's clear she's completely unresponsive." Price then pulled down the victim's trousers slightly and continued the assault.
The CCTV footage later showed Price getting up, closing the door and locking it. He then tried to switch off the television, sat down again and tapped the victim on the face to see if she was awake before putting his hand down her trousers and touching her again.
At one point during the assault, the victim moved position and turned quickly before falling back into a state of unconsciousness. When the victim later woke up, she tried to leave the room and discovered it was locked, before the defendant opened it for her. Mr Evans said: "She had no idea what had happened to her."
The following morning, complaints were made about Price's behaviour by the two witnesses and after the CCTV footage was reviewed the police were called and the defendant was arrested. Price, who was said to have a serious drink problem, claimed he also had no recollection of the incident. The defendant later pleaded guilty to sexual assault.
In a victim personal statement read out to the court by Mr Evans, the victim said: "When I found this out I was gobsmacked. It's disgusting, I can't believe he's done this to me. I'm glad he's been arrested so he can't do this to anyone else. Why did he do this to me in a living room on camera, thank God it was captured on camera. If this wasn't found out he might have done this to someone else."
Defence barrister Susan Ferrier said her client was "thoroughly ashamed" he had behaved in the way he did and could not remember the offence due to his own intoxication. Ms Ferrier said Price had been alcohol dependent for years which had stood in the way of relationships and employment.
Sentencing, Judge Richard Williams said: "You targeted a particularly vulnerable victim.... You were intoxicated and ignored concerns about your own behaviour. You deliberately isolated your victim by locking the door to prevent others from discovering what you were doing. You made sure she was unresponsive to touch and sexually assaulted her. It was a sustained sexual assault where you repeated and vigorously grabbed her vagina." Price was sentenced to a total of four years imprisonment.
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