ROYAL NAVY SAILOR CONVICTED OF RAPE ON WARSHIP
Chief Petty Officer Phillip Coates, a senior rating in the Royal Navy, was convicted of the heinous crime of rape against a female colleague.The incident occurred after a barbecue held on a warship in the Mediterranean between March 8 and 9 of the previous year.
During the trial at HMS Nelson, Portsmouth Naval Base, Coates, aged 30 and married, was found guilty by a panel of five senior naval officers after a week-long trial.
Despite claiming the act was consensual, the victim, a 24-year-old junior rating, was distressed and sobbing immediately following the assault.
Her memory of the incident was initially hazy until two months later, when she underwent Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing (EMDR) therapy.
The court heard that Coates had been drinking heavily before the attack—consuming a glass of red wine and six cans of lager—before following the victim into a small room and raping her on a small bunk.
The victim admitted she kissed Coates prior but had found the overall experience 'revolting,' and she did not consent to sex.
The court highlighted that this was the first case where a sailor was prosecuted for raping a female colleague since women had been permitted at sea by the Royal Navy in 1990.
The judge warned Coates that he faced a lengthy custodial sentence, and bail was set until the following Wednesday.
Coates was of previous good character, but the severity of the verdict underscored the Navy's stance against such conduct.
