Sajeenthira Dharmendra, a 24-year-old man from Aveley, Essex, has been sentenced to nine years and six months in prison for raping and sexually assaulting a teenage girl in St Neots, Cambridgeshire. The incident occurred on October 11, 2023, when Dharmendra met the 17-year-old victim through an online chat platform and arranged to meet her in the town.
The victim, nervous about entering his car, asked Dharmendra to empty his pockets and checked the boot before getting in. They drove to a nearby shop where he purchased alcohol and a vape. Dharmendra then poured vodka into a bottle of cola and pressured the teenager into drinking large amounts, warning her that she would be 'wasting his time' if she refused. After arriving at Riverside Car Park, Dharmendra began sexually assaulting the victim, who told him to stop. He forced her to drink more alcohol, causing her to pass out.
Upon regaining consciousness, the victim discovered that the bottom half of her clothes had been removed and she was in pain, with no memory of the events. The pair fell asleep in the car, and in the early hours of October 12, 2023, she unlocked Dharmendra's phone to find that he had filmed himself raping her while she was unconscious. Displaying remarkable courage, the victim forwarded the video to another phone to preserve evidence of the crime.
Dharmendra dropped the victim off in St Neots, where she immediately went to a friend's house and contacted the police. He was arrested later at his home in Essex, approximately 75 miles from the scene. Following a trial last month at Cambridge Crown Court, Dharmendra was found guilty of rape and assaulting a female aged 13 and over by penetration. He had pleaded guilty to voyeurism and making an indecent photograph or pseudo-photograph of a child.
On October 8, 2024, Judge Andrew Hurst sentenced Dharmendra to nine years and six months' imprisonment and ordered him to be placed on the Sex Offenders Register. During sentencing, the judge remarked: 'Everything that followed made it clear that she was only 17 - much younger than you. Your sole, single-minded purpose was for sexual intercourse. You planned to buy alcohol to get her drunk. You were sober. You were responsible for this girl who was very drunk, late at night, in the back of your car. What you should have done was decide that she was far too drunk and take her home. Instead, you raped her.' The case was investigated by Cambridgeshire Constabulary, with DC James Collinwood praising the victim's bravery: 'I would like to praise the victim for not only reporting what had happened, but having the foresight to secure evidence by sending the video on. She has shown tremendous strength and bravery during the investigation and trial.' This incident highlights the dangers of online meetings and the importance of victim support in securing justice.