Rape victim criticises police after six-year wait for justice

A woman who was brutally raped has spoken out about a catalogue of "catastrophic" police failures that led to a six-year wait before her attacker was convicted.

- MAYA OPPENHEIM

Amanda, whose name we have changed to protect her identity, was viciously assaulted by Paul Green on their second date after they originally met online. Seriously injured, she immediately went to a hospital. She then reported the crime to South Yorkshire Police.

But her case was closed twice by the police, and she was forced to use the 'Victims' Right to Review' procedure four times before the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) agreed to look at the case. South Yorkshire Police has since apologised for its failings.

Green, who is 50, was jailed for 16 years for rape, assault, and two counts of making a person engage in sexual activity without gaining consent in a trial at Sheffield Crown Court. He was also put on the sex offender register for life. A detective who took part in the initial police investigation was found guilty of misconduct and given a written warning last month in the wake of Amanda's complaints.

Speaking after Green's conviction, Amanda said: "I have continued to fight this case, accepting the horrific effects of reliving this again and again, because I cannot and will not accept for my daughters and all women that this is OK. It is not OK." She accused South Yorkshire Police and the CPS of gaslighting her into giving up instead of confessing to their failings, as she warned that their shortcomings have had "catastrophic" repercussions for her.