ROBERT AND MARK EVANS SENTENCED FOR RAPE AND SEXUAL ABUSE IN ROTHERHAM

Two brothers, Robert Evans and Mark Evans, who committed heinous acts of sexual violence against young girls in Rotherham nearly twenty years ago, have been sentenced to lengthy prison terms of 17 and 14 years respectively.

Robert Evans, aged 40, received the longer sentence, while his brother Mark, aged 37, was sentenced to 14 years. At the time of the offenses, Robert was approximately 21 years old and Mark was about 18. The crimes took place over a span of two years in the South Yorkshire town, during which they preyed on teenage girls as young as 13. The Sheffield Crown Court heard detailed accounts of their brutal assaults, which included raping two of the victims, with Mark Evans also convicted of sexual activity with a minor and assault by penetration.

The court proceedings revealed that both brothers were found guilty after a rigorous two-week trial held last year. Despite their denials, the jury convicted them of two counts of rape each. Mark Evans’s conviction extended to additional charges related to sexual activity with a child and assault by penetration.

During the sentencing, Judge David Dixon described one of Robert Evans’s attacks on a 13-year-old girl, stating that he “forcibly and viciously raped her” and then laughed at her when she was in obvious pain. The judge expressed his disbelief at the brutality of the act, describing it as “difficult to comprehend.”

One of the victims, a girl who was 13 when attacked by Mark Evans, provided a harrowing statement read aloud in court. She described the perpetrators as “predators” who viewed her as “a commodity in their eyes, a sexual possession.” Another woman, also a victim, shared that she had aspirations of attending university but felt her life chances were destroyed by the “horrid things” inflicted upon her by the Evans brothers.

The brothers appeared via videolink from prison for their sentencing hearing. Evidence presented during the trial detailed how they used intimidation tactics, drugs, and alcohol to manipulate and control their victims. The jury learned that Mark Evans, who had a learning difficulty and was described as having a “mental age” comparable to an older child approaching adolescence, lured a 13-year-old girl to a disused barn after giving her alcohol. There, he raped her after separating her from her friends.

Similarly, Robert Evans lured another girl to a house in Rotherham under false pretenses, claiming a friend would be there. He then supplied her with alcohol and assaulted her when she arrived.

The case was part of a broader investigation known as Operation Stovewood, conducted by the National Crime Agency (NCA). This operation was launched in response to the findings of the landmark Jay Report, which uncovered the abuse of at least 1,400 girls by gangs predominantly of Pakistani heritage in Rotherham between 1997 and 2013. The NCA states that Operation Stovewood is the largest law enforcement effort of its kind in the UK, having identified over 1,100 children, mostly girls, who were victims of exploitation.

While awaiting trial, the NCA also arrested and charged their sister, Ann Marie Evans, aged 29, for posting social media content that identified two of the victims. She was convicted and sentenced last year.

Samantha Thompson from the Crown Prosecution Service emphasized the gravity of the crimes, stating, “The Evans brothers targeted and groomed young girls, often with alcohol and drugs, for child sexual abuse and rape. The lifelong trauma inflicted on these victims cannot be overstated. Such conduct has severely damaged the community’s trust in Rotherham.”

Thompson further expressed gratitude to the victims for their bravery in coming forward and reporting these crimes, adding, “This conviction sends a clear message that the CPS will relentlessly pursue justice and prosecute those who sexually exploit children, regardless of how much time has passed.”