Kent man jailed for six years over two assaults of women walking alone

By Flora Thompson29th May 2018News EnglandCourts / Justice, Kent, News England, Sexual Abuse

A man who attacked two young women more than a year apart while they were walking alone at night has been jailed for six years.

Trevor Collier (pictured) punched his victims to the ground and tried to sexually assault one of them, police said.

The 30-year-old, of Canterbury Road, Chilham, in Kent, was investigated by police after a 19-year-old woman was chased by a man in the early hours of June 2 last year.

She was walking along University Road, Canterbury, after a night out with friends when she was grabbed by the shoulders and pushed to the floor.

He punched her repeatedly, causing her to temporarily lose consciousness, but awoke to see the offender walking away laughing, Kent Police said.

The victim fled until she came across three other women who called emergency services and stayed with her until they arrived.

He was arrested after police linked him to the crime after spotting a car he had access to on CCTV near the scene and by forensically examining the victim’s clothing.

He admitted a charge of committing an assault with the intention of committing a sexual assault, police said.

While awaiting his sentence in custody, he was also charged after a similar attack on an 18-year-old woman in Ashford Road, Chartham, on April 13 2016, to which he also pleaded guilty.

When released from prison he must serve an extra four years on licence as part of an extended sentence, the force said.

Detective sergeant Ross Gurden, of the Kent and Essex serious crime directorate, said: “These were very serious offences committed by a dangerous individual who appeared to deliberately track and target young women when they were at their most vulnerable.

“The DNA evidence in this investigation was key and demonstrates what a vital role forensic investigators and scientists play in modern policing. Without their efforts it would have been much more difficult to prove Trevor Collier was responsible.

“His dreadful actions were traumatic for the two young women targeted in this case, who I hope have found some comfort in this result along with the knowledge that Collier will now spend a significant period of time behind bars.”