Telford man sentenced to five years in prison for rape
A Telford man has been convicted of rape and sentenced to five years in prison after a trial at Shrewsbury Crown Court.
James Ratcliff, aged 36, of Sutton Hill, was found guilty by the jury on Tuesday 4 May and sentenced on Friday 2 July. He was also placed on the Sex Offenders Register.
The offence took place on 24 November 2018 in Oakengates, Telford. The victim was walking away from a nightclub with a friend when Ratcliff approached her. After talking to her briefly he led her away from her friend and into an alleyway where he raped her.
A report was made to the police and Ratcliff was arrested a short while after the offence took place.
Detective Sergeant Jon Taylor
Following the conviction, Detective Sergeant Jon Taylor said:
“We welcome this conviction and I hope it offers some comfort to the victim who bravely came forward so we could investigate the offence fully.
“Despite these types of incidents being rare, I hope this conviction will provide reassurance to all our communities that we will always investigate sexual offences and do everything we can to bring offenders to justice.
“If you are a victim of a sexual offence you can report it to police on 101. In an emergency dial 999.”
