NORWICH MAN SENTENCED FOR VIOLENT ELDERLY RAPE AND ASSAULT

A 23-year-old man named Robert Cann from Bignold Road, Mile Cross, was sentenced to a minimum of five years in prison at Norwich Crown Court for the brutal assault on an 82-year-old man with dementia. Cann pleaded guilty to raping the elderly man in his own home on April 1, during which he barged into the flat, demanded money, and warned the victim that he would return and beat him if he told the police. He also stole �30 from the pensioner. The court was told that the elderly victim was raped in Norwich on the specified date, following Cann's violent intrusion. The crime left the victim severely affected, with his sister describing how he lost his will to live and became afraid to go out, after being admitted to hospital with malnutrition and dehydration. Additionally, Cann admitted to sexually assaulting a 61-year-old woman on the same day in Norwich, grabbing her by the throat before she managed to fight him off. She now suffers from nightmares and refuses to go out alone at night. The judge emphasized the severity of Cann's actions, stating, 'The rape of an 82-year-old man almost beggars belief, and you treated him in an appalling way. You certainly represent a significant risk to the public.'