SWINDON MAN JAILED FOR RAPE AND SEXUAL ASSAULTS
A FATHER-of-three has been jailed for seven years for raping and sexually assaulting a woman.Francisco Pereira, formerly of Portsmouth Street but now of Booth House, Spring Gardens, twice raped the same victim during a five-year period between the end of 2004 and January 2010.
In the same period, the 48-year-old also carried out two separate sex attacks on the woman.
A judge at Swindon Crown Court was told that the Goan national, who has been in the country for eight years, was living in Swindon at the time of the offences.
He sexually abused the woman, who was also a member of the large community of people from the state in the west of India, over a long period of time.
The court was told that for many years the victim was too scared to report what he had been doing to her.
Pereira pleaded guilty to one count of rape and one of indecent assault.
The court heard that each of the charges represented two different sex attacks on the woman.
In a victim impact statement, she told the police “I would say he has devastated my life”.
Rob Ross, defending, said his client feared he may have been mentally ill but a psychiatric report showed he was not.
He said the issues appeared to be down to his drinking.
“Clearly this is a man whose life has been undermined by alcohol, which is not uncommon in that community,” he said.
As a result of the convictions, he said his client, whose wife has left him, realised he was facing a lengthy jail term.
He said the father of three, who are aged 21, 17 and the youngest is still in school, also faced shame among his community.
Passing sentence, Judge Euan Ambrose said “There are a number of aggravating features in this case.
These four occasions and these two counts represent a course of conduct carried out by you towards the victim over a number of years.” As well as jailing him, the judge also imposed a restraining order keeping him away from the victim, told him he must register as a sex offender for life and barred him from ever working with children and vulnerable adults.
