Fareham rapist jailed for nine years

A Fareham man was sentenced today (25 May 2022) at Portsmouth Crown Court for raping a woman he did not know on the footbridge above Western Way.

John Horne, aged 39, was jailed for nine years after pleading guilty to two counts of rape and another of assault occasioning actual bodily harm at an earlier hearing.

He violently attacked the woman during the early hours of 19 March this year, after she had left the Slug and Lettuce pub following an evening out with friends. Horne threatened her with violence before assaulting and then raping her. He ran off, leaving her in a distressed state to be found by a member of the public who called the police.

Andrea Hills, CPS Wessex Senior Crown Prosecutor, said: “John Horne initially denied any involvement in this dreadful attack, but soon changed his story when confronted by the overwhelming evidence gathered during the police investigation.

“The victim has shown incredible courage and bravery for supporting the prosecution of a stranger who attacked her in such shocking circumstances.

“I hope that today’s sentence will go some way to help her recover from the horrendous ordeal and trauma she has experienced.

“I would like to thank her for supporting the prosecution case. Without the victim’s evidence, we would not have been able to deliver justice today and keep a dangerous rapist off the streets.”