Grindr drug-rapist jailed for 23 years

Meridian
Hampshire & Isle of Wight
Grindr
Monday 4 June 2018 at 2:50pm

Sam Ashley, 30, was jailed for 23 years Credit: Solent News Agency

A Hampshire man has been jailed for drugging and raping men he met on the dating app Grindr.

30-year-old Sam Ashley - also known as Davis - from Fareham was found guilty of four charges of rape, four counts of administering a substance with intent and two charges of attempted rape.

The attacks took place in 2016. Ashley had secretly slipped drugs into his victims' drinks. On one occasion, giving one man tablets for a headache, leading him to believe they were paracetamol or ibuprofen.

Custody photograph: Samuel Benjamin Ashley (Sam Ashley) Credit: Hampshire Constabulary

Ashley had denied all 10 charges but detectives working on the case built a strong case against him - which included the victims' accounts and expert evidence from a toxicologist .

Ashley was jailed for 23 years. Detective Inspector, James Stewart, from Hampshire Police spoke to ITV News Meridian after the sentencing: