A serial sex attacker deported from Australia to England, where he raped again, was sentenced to life imprisonment yesterday.Edward Godfrey, aged 43, had previously been convicted of four rapes on three women in Australia.
The judge, Recorder Michael Lawson, described him as a "serious danger to women" wherever he lived.
The Old Bailey court heard that Godfrey deliberately targeted a young Australian tourist after settling in London.
He lured her to his north London flat, forcing her to pose pornographically as he raped and assaulted her.
The victim, a 22-year-old backpacker, believed Godfrey was a father figure who had helped her after a breakup, unaware of his criminal past.Godfrey had left his Hertfordshire home with his parents at age 10 but had never acquired Australian citizenship.
His criminal history in Australia included a rape in Surfers Paradise in 1983 and indecent assaults in Sydney in 1996.
He was also jailed for 12 years in Sydney for three rapes and an attempted rape in 1982.
In the UK, he had been jailed for sex crimes in the past, and at the sentencing, he was convicted on all charges after a jury trial.The judge emphasized the gravity of his crimes, stating, "It is a sad irony you inflicted harm and untold distress on yet another member of the Australian community, this time in this country, having been deported here.
This must never happen again." The verdict underscores the danger posed by Godfrey, who remains a convicted sex offender with a history of multiple rapes across two countries.
Court Outcome
Conviction and Sentencing Details
Sentenced
Detected legal outcome
A serial sex attacker deported from Australia to England, where he raped again, was sentenced to life imprisonment yesterday.Edward Godfrey, aged 43, had previously been convicted of four rapes on three women in Australia. The judge, Rec...
Life or indeterminate sentence
life
A serial sex attacker deported from Australia to England, where he raped again, was sentenced to life imprisonment yesterday.Edward Godfrey, aged 43, had previously been convicted of four rapes on three women in Australia
Prison sentence
life
A serial sex attacker deported from Australia to England, where he raped again, was sentenced to life imprisonment yesterday.Edward Godfrey, aged 43, had previously been convicted of four rapes on three women in Australia
Prison sentence
12 years
He was also jailed for 12 years in Sydney for three rapes and an attempted rape in 1982
Prison sentence
In the UK, he had been jailed for sex crimes in the past, and at the sentencing, he was convicted on all charges after a jury trial.The judge emphasized the gravity of his crimes, stating, "It is a sad irony you inflicted harm and untold distress on yet another member of the Australian community, this time in this country, having been deported here
