North Devon man who is 'a danger to women' jailed after sex attacks

A man who carried out two sex attacks on women in Barnstaple last year has been sentenced to more than a decade in prison.

Married father Nicholas Ashby, from Sowden Park, Barnstaple, was sentenced on Monday 31 July at Exeter Crown Court for one count of sexual assault and one count of attempted rape.

The 41-year-old had pleaded guilty in May to both the sexual assault of a woman in Barnstaple in September 2022 and the attempted rape of another woman in the town one month later.

Exeter Crown Court was told that married Nicolas Ashby, who has three children, was a "danger to women".

• Watch CCTV on the night of Ashby's second attack

The attacks, which happened over two weekends last year, had been planned and targeted lone women walking home after nights out.

The court heard that Ashby armed himself with a knife after his first attack showing a clear escalation in his offending. Not only did he threaten his second victim with it, but also cut her during the assault.

Both victims were today hailed for their bravery. One of the women was in court to see Ashby sentenced to a total of 11 years and 8 months in prison.

He will serve at least 4 years and 8 months before being considered for release.

In witness impact statements read to court, both of his victims said they would 'never be the same again' after his attacks.

“What he did will be with me forever,” one said.  

Piecing together the victims' descriptions of their attacker, the police identified their suspect was most likely driving a Mercedes AMG or sport model.

Without a registration number, they traced the owners of all these cars between Barnstaple and Exeter and asked all those that fitted the description of their suspect for DNA.

Ashby was one of those - and lived within a four minute drive from where the attacks happened.

When his DNA was found to match that taken from the clothing of the victims, he was arrested - while out driving in his car. 

Detective Inspector Rob Back said: “The guilty plea is testament to the hard work of my team and the evidence we have put together that proved beyond doubt that Ashby attacked these innocent women.

“Receiving a guilty plea spared the victims any further trauma of having to re-live the attacks in court as part of a trial.

“I want to take this opportunity to thank the two victims of this case. Their bravery and courage has been key in us bringing Nicolas Ashby to justice.

“The resolve the victims have shown in seeking justice has been incredible - including the quick thinking of the first victim who wrote down the information she could on her phone, which time-stamped the incident for us, which assisted in the investigation.

North Devon Commander, Superintendent Toby Davies said: “First and foremost, I would like to take this opportunity to thank and commend the incredible bravery that these two women have shown. They have been remarkably resilient throughout.

“The criminal justice process can appear daunting. Both the victims in this case were supported from the outset by specially trained Sexual Offences Liaison Officers and together they have helped ensure Ashby has been brought to justice.

“In the early stages of this investigation, it understandably caused significant community concern in Barnstaple. The early identification of Ashby, his conviction and eventual guilty plea is a testament to the thorough and extremely detailed investigation carried out by North Devon Crime and D&C’s Major Crime Investigation Teams.

“These incidents had a huge impact on our community. It put the fear of crime into women and girls going about their daily lives. It is a basic right; women should be able to walk alone free from the fear of violence.”