Portsmouth man jailed for 10 years following the rape of a 22-year-old woman

Samuel Belstone, 29, of Copnor Road, was sentenced in Portsmouth Crown Court today (May 9), after being found guilty to two counts of rape following the incident last year.

The court heard that in the early hours of Saturday, October 9, following a night out in the city centre, the victim, now 23, had been raped by a man she didn’t know in an outdoor area she was not familiar with.

This was reported to police at 8.30am on the same morning and an investigation was launched by specialist officers.

Following CCTV enquiries and forensic analysis, Belstone was arrested and charged with two counts of rape.

Detective Sergeant Claire Ratcliffe, of Hampshire Constabulary’s specialist rape unit operation amberstone, said: ‘First and foremost, we would like to commend the bravery and courage of the victim in this case. We know how incredibly difficult it can be to report crimes of this nature and this has understandably been a traumatic time for the lady involved, who has been supported by specialist officers at every stage of the investigation.

‘I hope that today’s sentence will give her some closure and help her to begin moving forward in her life.’

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Portsmouth Superintendent and District Commander Clare Jenkins added: ‘We have been upping our patrols at key times around our bars and clubs, as well as working with licensed premises within the city around how they safeguard their customers, with all venues having been offered welfare and vulnerability training. This is so that staff are able to identify potentially vulnerable people and how to properly safeguard them.

‘The training encourages premises to adopt safe areas and encourage the use of welfare officers, as well as ensuring that people feel they can easily report an incident to staff.

‘If you’ve been a victim, please report rape or sexual assault as soon as possible. Even if you’re not 100 per cent sure, we’d sooner hear from you so that we can make sure you’re safe.’

You can find out more about the support available to victims of sexual offences here at hampshire.police.uk/advice/advice-and-information/rsa/rape-and-sexual-assault/support-for-victims-of-rape-and-sexual-assault.