Sonny Boyes

A jury at Exeter Crown Court has convicted 19-year-old Sonny Boyes of a series of serious sexual offences following a double sex attack in the Digby and Sowton area of Exeter on the evening of 9 May 2025. Boyes, described by the prosecution as a 'highly sexualised young man', targeted two teenage victims within minutes of each other, showing a complete disregard for their consent and safety.

The first incident occurred around 9pm when Boyes encountered a 16-year-old girl he had briefly met earlier that day. After asking her to hold some beer cans, he led her into bushes near the Digby park and ride car park. According to the victim's testimony, Boyes asked, 'Do you want me to rape you?', which she initially thought was a joke. He then forced her to perform oral sex and raped her. The assault was interrupted by some boys searching for a football, after which the victim fled in tears, captured on CCTV, and returned home in a hysterical state, prompting police involvement.

Shortly after emerging from the bushes and briefly speaking to a security guard, Boyes approached his second victim, a 17-year-old girl walking to Digby and Sowton train station. He introduced himself by boasting that he had 'done another girl in bushes' earlier. Using her phone's hotspot to make a call, he quickly escalated to kissing and groping her in a bus shelter, despite her repeated pleas to stop. Witnesses nearby did not intervene. Boyes then walked with her to the station, holding her in a headlock-type grip, and continued molesting her on the train to Exeter, even asking if she wanted sex in the toilets. The victim described feeling terrified, panicked, and shocked during the ordeal.

Upon arrest at McDonald's in Exeter, Boyes admitted to having sex with two girls that day but claimed, 'I can't help it that I'm a stud and they want to get on my d***. It's not my fault they feel bad afterwards.' He further stated, 'At the end of the day why would I need to rape a girl for a f*** when I'm this good looking?' Prosecutor Heather Hope highlighted the 'strikingly similar' accounts from both victims, neither of whom knew each other or Boyes, and emphasised his utter lack of concern for their wishes. Boyes, defending himself in court, accused the victims of 'crying rape' and lying due to guilt over cheating on their boyfriends, while describing himself as a man with a 'strong moral foundation'.

The jury convicted Boyes on nine out of ten charges, including two rapes, four assaults by penetration, and three sexual assaults; he was acquitted of one count of oral rape. Judge James Patrick expressed grave concern over Boyes's erratic behaviour during the trial, including outbursts where he called the victims' accounts 'a big fat f*** off lie' and vowed to appeal. The judge described Boyes as a 'dangerous young man' and adjourned sentencing for pre-sentence reports and psychiatric assessment, with the hearing scheduled after Christmas 2025. It was also revealed that Boyes had a prior conviction for exposing his genitals in Cathedral Green. The case was investigated by Devon and Cornwall Police.