WIMBLEDON TEACHER JAILED AND BANNED FOR RAPING SLEEPING WOMAN
A teacher convicted of sexually assaulting a sleeping woman has been sentenced to prison and has been permanently disqualified from teaching.Austin Gacheru, a former educator at Ricards Lodge High School, is currently serving a seven-year prison term after being found guilty of rape.
In addition to the rape conviction, he was also found guilty of involvement in cannabis production and possession of MDMA.
At age 35, Gacheru was employed at the all-girls secondary school located in Wimbledon when police arrested him in February 2016 following the discovery of cannabis plants at a property he owned.
He was subsequently suspended from his teaching duties during an official disciplinary process.
Later that same year, Gacheru met a woman during a night out; she was involved in a casual sexual encounter with one of his friends.
The group went to a residence where the woman and Gacheru’s friend engaged in consensual sex.
Sometime afterward, feeling unwell, Gacheru went to the bathroom while the woman was asleep.
She later awoke to find Gacheru assaulting her, leading to his arrest.
A court convicted him of rape, and he received a seven-year sentence beginning in January 2022.
Furthermore, he has been placed on the sex offenders register for life.
The sentencing judge remarked on the incident, noting the frightening nature of the experience when she awoke to realize it was not her original companion but someone else assaulting her.
On March 30, a panel of the Teaching Regulation Agency concluded that Gacheru should be prohibited from teaching indefinitely, citing the severity of his crimes, with no possibility of appeal or seeking to have the ban overturned.
