Man jailed for 13 years for raping woman in front of child

A TWENTY-SEVEN-year-old man was yesterday jailed for 13 years after being found guilty of raping a woman at knifepoint in front of her young child.

The attack took place in Nicosia last November 6, in the 36-year-old woman’s home, when the man broke into her apartment while she was asleep, and holding a knife to her throat, raped her while her three-year-old son looked on. The court heard during the trial that the attack lasted quite a while.

Her husband, who was not home at the time of the attack, said his wife called him immediately afterwards, in a terrible state.

In court, reading his decision and stressing that rape could carry a life sentence and was considered one of the most serious crimes, the Judge said rape was a physical and psychological violation of a victim’s life, changing their personalities forever.

Examining the facts of the case, the court said that the illegal entry of the suspect into the home, carrying a knife, led the victim to fear for her life and that of her child.

The court heard that the woman had suffered serious psychological side-effects from the attack and her family said they even had to help her move home.

Asked to comment on the incident at the time, Police Chief Iacovos Papacostas said this was “an extremely serious case”.

“Its seriousness is demonstrated by the circumstances under which this horrific event took place. [The attack took place] at night time and under the threat of a knife and in the presence of a child a rape took place.”