BOURNEMOUTH MAN SENTENCED TO 15 YEARS FOR RAPE AND ABUSE IN HOTEL ORDEAL
A man identified as Ashley Lacey-Pring, 29, was found guilty of multiple serious offenses including rape and assaults.He subjected a woman to a heinous four-day ordeal in Bournemouth, during which he repeatedly abused her in a hotel room.
He tied her up and ignored her pleas to stop, acting out of what a judge described as "callous humiliation" driven by obsession with sex.
Prosecutor Tim Moores announced that about a week before the incident, Lacey-Pring punched the victim, breaking her ribs and telling her not to go to hospital.
The incident occurred after they moved into a hotel on St Michael’s Road in Bournemouth.
The woman reported that initially, their encounter was consensual, but Lacey-Pring’s drug use increased, leading him to demand sex and become increasingly aggressive and abusive.
He continued taking illegal libido-enhancing drugs, which contributed to paranoia; he accused her of having a device inside her and would only relent to watch pornography before accelerating his abusive actions, including tying her ankles and holding her down.
The woman sustained bruises from being 'thrown around,' and when she expressed pain, he dismissed her, telling her to 'shut up.' After four days of abuse, Lacey-Pring ran out of drugs and left the hotel to find more, which gave the woman the chance to seek help from the hotel manager.
The judge described that although he did not explicitly prevent her from leaving, his actions made her too frightened to escape.
The woman testified that she used to be outgoing and bubbly but was left scared to leave her house, trust anyone, and suffered significant mental health issues, job loss, substance dependence, and breakdown of family relationships.
Her statement included, "My life has forever been affected by you and your actions to me.
My life will never be totally free from you." Lacey-Pring has 30 previous convictions for 40 offenses, including an incident of indecent exposure in 2021 where he was noted for 'mooning' staff.
During sentencing, mitigating lawyer Christopher Pix described the incident as "incredibly nasty but isolated" and blamed his client’s mental health struggles and substance abuse.
Lacey-Pring pleaded guilty to assault occasioning grievous bodily harm and was found guilty of two counts of rape and two counts of assault by penetration.
He was sentenced to 15 years in prison for these offenses and a separate incident.
Detective Sergeant Shane Grant commended the victim’s bravery for coming forward and emphasized the police’s commitment to supporting victims and thoroughly investigating such crimes.
The case highlights the severe impact of sexual and physical abuse on victims’ lives and the importance of justice.
