Chret Callender

Chret Callender, a 28-year-old failed asylum seeker from Trinidad staying at the Britannia Hotel in Bournemouth, Dorset, was convicted at Bournemouth Crown Court of rape and sexual assault following an incident in the early hours of 14 June 2023.

The victim, a young woman whose identity cannot be disclosed, had spent the previous evening with friends, including Callender, at Bournemouth Pleasure Gardens. After returning home by taxi, Callender, appearing drunk and determined, turned up uninvited at her door. Despite her refusals, he forced his way into her home and overpowered her in the bedroom, ignoring her pleas to stop.

The woman demonstrated remarkable presence of mind by secretly recording most of the assault on her phone, capturing the build-up, the rape itself, and the aftermath. In the audio, she can be heard crying and repeatedly saying, 'I have said no, please stop.' Callender responded dismissively, telling her to 'have some respect for me' and to 'shut up'. At one point, he remarked, 'Why are you crying? You're making me feel like I'm raping you.' Following the attack, he apologised, admitting he had 'f...ed up'.

During the trial, Callender denied the rape charges, admitting only to pressuring the woman into sex but claiming he stopped when she refused. He alleged she faked the recording. However, after nearly five hours of deliberation, the jury unanimously found him guilty of both rape and sexual assault. Callender showed no emotion upon hearing the verdict.

Prosecutor Russell Pyne described the recordings as pivotal evidence, noting how they documented the victim's increasing distress and Callender's apparent apologies. Defence barrister Mary Aspinall-Miles informed the court that Callender was willing to participate in the government's Early Removal Scheme, allowing for his deportation as a foreign national prisoner before completing his sentence. His asylum appeal was ongoing at the time of the offence.

Sentencing is scheduled for 22 January 2024 at Bournemouth Crown Court.