Man jailed for 13 years for raping sex worker

An attacker who held captive and raped a prostitute after calling her to his home for sex has been jailed for 13 years.

Johnny Corbett kept the terrified sex worker imprisoned for four hours, convinced her he had a gun and warned he had killed people before.

Newcastle Crown Court heard the 42-year-old, who is "obsessed" with sex, took the woman's phone to stop her calling for help during the prolonged attack and left her believing she was about to die.

During the terrifying ordeal the victim was raped, repeatedly threatened and ordered to carry out sex acts.

The terrified mum only managed to escape when Corbett left the room after she claimed to take ill, which gave her a chance to barricade herself in and call 999 from a secret, second mobile phone she was carrying.

Corbett, of The Avenue, Hetton le Hole, who has a previous conviction for a sex attack 20 years ago and has a history of offences against women, denied two charges of rape and one of false imprisonment.

He was convicted by a jury after a trial, where the victim had to re-live her ordeal from the witness box.

Judge Deborah Sherwin said Corbett poses a risk to the public and sentenced him to 13 years behind bars with an extended five year licence period.

Specialist officers from Northumbria Police's dedicated Protecting Vulnerable People team have supported the victim throughout the investigation to help bring this offender to justice.

And their work will continue to support the woman as she tries to move on from this terrifying ordeal.

Detective Constable Ian Moore who works with victims of rape has supported the victim through the investigation and stresses the importance of reporting any sexual assault to police.