Posted on December 31, 2021

Predator Who Attacked Six Women in 12-Day Rampage Less Than a Month After He Was Released From Prison Is Jailed for Life

Emer Scully, Daily Mail, December 17, 2021

A sex predator who attacked six women days after he was released from a prison sentence for similar offences has been jailed for life.

Joshua Victorin, 24, was supposed to be under supervision when he embarked on a 12-day spree of terror during the festive season last year.

Joshua Victorin

Joshua Victorin

He attacked four women in a single day, Inner London crown court heard.

Victorin’s previous victims included a prison officer as well as a drug and alcohol worker.

He was released in early December and attacked his next victim on December 23, 2020 when she got off a bus in Peckham.

At an earlier hearing, prosecutor Claire Harden-Frost said: ‘These offences can be seen as part of a campaign to rape and sexually assault women walking alone in the streets of London.

‘This, frankly is most people’s nightmare in this situation.’

Victorin has seven previous convictions for 14 offences dating back to 2014.

He was jailed for 17 months in February 2019 for unlawful wounding and possession of an offensive weapon.

Victorin was jailed for a year after sexually assaulted two prison guards while serving his sentence, as well as a separate sexual assault on a female police officer in March last year.

He was released halfway through his sentence in August, but recalled to prison after being charged with possession of cannabis and outraging public decency – by having consensual sex in a park in front of people, including children – and was then freed under licence in December.

Judge Silas Reid told him: ‘You grabbed her forcefully and she screamed. You pulled her jogging bottoms to the floor with both hands.

‘A passer-by saw her with your hands around her waist. On the 31st December that year the second victim was walking home in Elephant and Castle.

‘You had dark clothing on. You grabbed her and pulled her trousers down causing her to fall.

‘You pulled your trousers. You got on top of her. You had a hand on each of her legs which you had in the air.

‘When challenged by a security guard, you didn’t immediately stop your actions but you dragged her around the corner to continue.

‘You had what was described as a neutral expression as you attempted to rape your victim. You have come close to destroying [this victim’s] life and her relationships.

‘She had been planning to start a family with her husband prior to this attack but has been unable to do so because of what you did to her.’

The victim said afterwards: ‘I dread to think what might have happened. I couldn’t have fought him off for much longer.’

‘He could have slit my throat or choked me. Or if my head had hit the floor in a different way, I could easily be six feet under now.’

The victim, who previously spoke to the Mail On Sunday under the pseudonym Laura, had been on her way home from a shop when she was attacked at 7.30pm on New Year’s Eve.

Victorin carried out four sex assaults on 4 January this year in the Bermondsey and Elephant and Castle area.

On each occasion Victorin came up behind the women, grabbing them around the waist and legs.

He pulled the trousers of the sixth victim down, she pulled them back up again but he pulled her towards him so that his groin was against her, panting as he did so.

Victorin was charged three days later.

He asked police officers if he could be released immediately and explained he was very sorry and ‘had done enough contemplation.’

Judge Reid said: ‘There is no possible real evidence of the length of time you will remain a danger. You can be charming and seemingly sincere.

‘Underneath you have no real understanding of the impact of your behaviour or you just do not care about the impact you have.

‘While you dressed so as to avoid detection, you were determined on each day to find a victim to attack.

‘You were not deterred by having been interrupted on neither the first nor the second occasion by members of the public.

‘I do not accept you have any genuine remorse at all. Many times in the past you have claimed to have victim awareness.

‘These actions prove those are at the moment entirely empty words.’

Stephen Akinsanya, defending, earlier said his client’s ‘indication of remorse is genuine’, adding: ‘This is a young man who is unable, or has been unable, to contain sexual urges and it is an area in which he needs help.’

Victorin was handed a life sentence with a minimum term of eight years and eight months, minus the 334 days he has already spent in custody for the two attempted rapes.

He was given concurrent sentences totalling three years and two months for the sexual assaults with no separate penalty for the possession of cannabis.

Vitorin who was living in various addresses in the Southwark area, admitted two attempted rapes, four of sexual assault and possession of cannabis.