A 76-year-old pensioner could spend the rest of his life in prison after being found guilty of rape and indecent assault on a young girl in the 1970s and 80s.
Ralph Stevenson was jailed for 22 years for repeatedly assaulting the girl at multiple addresses in the Nottingham area.
The victim reported the offences after seeing Stevenson get convicted and jailed previously for similar offences in Lincolnshire.
The woman cannot be named but explained in Nottingham Crown Court on Monday the severity of the sexual assaults she suffered at the hands of Stevenson while she was just a teenager.
These include two incidents of rape when she was just thirteen years old, along with 23 counts of sexual assault which he was found guilty for.
Stevenson denied all allegations when interviewed by police officers, and was already serving an 18-year sentence for raping and sexually assaulting another child between 2008 and 2013.
After the guilty verdict on Monday, Stevenson has been sentenced to over two decades behind bars.
With his previous sentence alongside his new one, it is very very likely that Stevenson will never be a free man again.
A spokesperson for Lincolnshire Police said: “This case shows the importance of communicating such outcomes to help other survivors of this horrific crime to find the strength to seek justice.”
Detective Constable Amy Revill of Nottinghamshire Police has been overseeing the investigation since the allegations were first reported in September 2019.
She said: “This was an appalling catalogue of offences that, had it not been for the bravery and determination of the victim, would have gone unresolved and unpunished.
“Stevenson repeatedly assaulted a child over a period of more than ten years, forcing her to engage in acts that she was simply too young to understand.
“Today’s sentencing brings to an end the court case which has been a difficult journey for the victim, who displayed great dignity and courage in taking her complaints to the police.
“So, as Stevenson prepares to spend even more of this life in prison, I would like to publicly thank her and her family for help and cooperation they have given to this investigation at what I know has been an extremely difficult time.”
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