Man jailed for sexual assault and rape of woman in Lewisham

A thorough investigation by the Met sexual offences team has seen a man who took advantage of a young woman after a night out in south-east London jailed. 

Craig Dorney, 35 (22.01.89) of Duncombe Hill, Lewisham, was sentenced at Woolwich Crown Court to seven years in prison on Thursday, 12 December for rape and two counts of sexual assault.

The court heard the 27-year-old victim-survivor had taken a taxi to Lewisham, just before 02:00hrs on Saturday 29, June, when she met Dorney who was getting out of another cab.

After the two spoke, Dorney assaulted and raped her before she could get away to call police.

The victim-survivor managed to capture part of the assault on her phone, taking a video to record their conversation, which became a key part of evidence in the case detectives built against Dorney.

Dorney was identified and arrested within 24 hours.

The investigation was led by specialist local officers who supported the victim-survivor to take her account of what happened.

The team worked tirelessly to build an investigation against Dorney by trawling through CCTV, and gathering forensic and medical evidence, such as Dorney’s clothing, bedding and phone and taxi receipts.

Detectives also obtained key witness statements from friends, as well as the two taxi drivers that had driven the suspect and victim-survivor on the night of the assault.

Dorney was charged with rape and two counts of sexual assault on Sunday, 28 July.

He appeared at Woolwich Crown Court on Monday, 2 December and was found guilty on Friday, 6 December of all three offences.

Detective Constable James Hart, who led the investigation for the Met, said: 

“We hope this sentence brings some level of justice for the victim-survivor who bravely came forward and helped us catch her perpetrator in what must have been extremely distressing circumstances.

“We’d like to thank the victim-survivor for providing vital evidence at the start of our investigation, as well as the other witnesses who provided statements. 

“Dorney is a sexual predator who targeted a vulnerable woman and I hope this case proves the Met is determined to tackle violence against women and girls, which has a significant and lasting impact on victim-survivors."

The Met is committed to radically improving how it protects the public from harm, especially the violence women and girls suffer, as part of its New Met for London strategy.  

The Met is putting extra people into specialist teams to prioritise this critical work and target offenders, with officers and staff working more closely with partners across London to protect victim-survivors and bring offenders to justice.   

Police are aiming to do much more to identify and tackle the most dangerous and prolific perpetrators of Violence Against Women and Girls, identifying high risk and high harm locations, and making better use of police powers to protect women and girls from perpetrators.  

Find out more on how to report a rape or sexual assault here. Always call 999 in an emergency.   

If you’ve been a victim of rape or sexual assault, charities and support agencies can offer help and guidance: 

Rape Crisis: 08085002222   

National Rape and Sexual Abuse Helpline: 0808 802 9999    

Survivors UK: 0203 598 3898 info@survivorsuk.org.   

Samaritans: 116 123 jo@samaritans.org