MAN JAILED FOR SEX ATTACK ON WOMAN WHILE SHE WAS UNCONSCIOUS
2021.A man convicted of committing a serious sexual assault on a woman who was intoxicated and under the influence of cannabis has been sentenced to seven years in prison.
Matthew Hancock attacked his victim at a residence in Leeds while she was loosely conscious, experiencing periods of unconsciousness.
Following a trial, a jury at Leeds Crown Court found Hancock guilty of the offense.
During his testimony, he accused both the victim and another woman of fabricating the accusation as part of a conspiracy.
Witnesses told the court that all three individuals had been consuming alcohol and smoking cannabis that evening.
The victim began to feel unwell and vomited, then lay down on a sofa.
Hancock took advantage of a moment when the other woman briefly left the room to assault her.
He verified her unconsciousness by slapping her across the face before forcibly assaulting her sexually.
After the incident, the victim contacted her boyfriend and the other woman to recount what had happened, prompting police involvement.
Hancock, aged 28 and from Windmill Lane in Batley, was convicted of assault by penetration.
He denied the allegations, claiming that the victim and the other woman had invented the story because he had flirted with another woman earlier that evening.
Prosecutor Richard Woolfall presented a statement from the victim in court, describing the ongoing trauma resulting from the assault.
She said: “I am no longer the same person.
I am no longer able to relax in any situation.
“My ability to trust has gone.” A pre-sentence report stated Hancock now admits carrying out the offence.
Charles Blatchford, mitigating, said Hancock has no previous convictions for sexual offences.
