ILFORD PREDATOR ANTHONY ANANTHARAJAH JAILED FOR RAPING GIRL
Anthony Anantharajah, aged 35, was convicted of raping a 16-year-old girl at a house party in Plymouth in 2017 after luring her with alcohol and exploiting her vulnerability.The girl, who was only 16, told the court: "The impact on my life remains huge.
I will never recover from what Anthony did to me.
I will never forget this face, his smell, my fear, and feelings of disgust, my loss of respect for myself and my body." According to Devon and Cornwall Police, she had initially texted friends to say she was at a party with older men and felt vulnerable.
She eventually fell asleep in Anantharajah’s bed but woke to find him raping her.
She managed to escape but was found crying and hyperventilating crying in the street by a member of the public who called 999.
Anantharajah was arrested moments later, but he denied any sexual contact with the girl.
The police investigation revealed that he was part of a grooming gang involved in multiple rapes at house parties in the Plymouth area, exploiting vulnerable young girls through money, drugs, and alcohol.
Four victims aged between 14 and 16 came forward, describing how they were lured and exploited by these men, who created a false sense of adulthood and safety, then assaulted them.
Prosecutor Dan Pawson-Pounds explained that the events were orchestrated to exploit young girls, with a clear power imbalance, and the perpetrators targeted girls to keep them silent through guilt and fear.
Anantharajah was convicted of one count of raping a female aged 16 or over but was cleared of engaging in non-penetrative sexual activity with a girl under 15.
He was sentenced to 13 years in jail.
The case highlights the vile campaign of sexual abuse carried out by the defendants, causing life-changing trauma to the victims, as stated by Claire Brinton of the Crown Prosecution Service.
