2012: HOLIDAYMAKER JAILED FOR RAPING UNCONSCIOUS TEEN IN TENT
A man who assaulted a drunken teenager by raping her while she was unconscious in his tent has received a five-year prison sentence.
Michael Aspinall, 28 years old, residing on Dixon Street in Westhoughton, was caught engaging in sexual activity with the 18-year-old girl as she lay unresponsive.
The teenager was discovered by other holidaymakers after she had collapsed following a night out in Newquay and was intoxicated.
Aspinall had offered to care for her and took her into his tent, where security personnel later found him engaging in sexual intercourse with her.
They instructed him to get dressed and leave, but moments later, security observed him repeating the act.
Aspinall claimed that the girl had consented, but she had no memory of the incident and awoke in hospital.
The jury deliberated for under three hours before convicting him of rape, and he was ordered to register as a sex offender permanently.
Judge Christopher Harvey Clark QC described the crime as appalling, noting its serious effects on the victim, who has since dropped out of university and changed significantly since the assault.
