The Court of Appeal reduced R.K.’s sentence for rape from 18 years, with the final five suspended, to 12 years, with the final two suspended. It also replaced a concurrent 13-year sentence for sexual assault with eight years and ordered two years of post-release supervision. The court allowed the appeal against sentence severity on 7 July 2016.
R.K. had pleaded guilty to rape and sexual assault. The Court of Appeal said the pleas, entered on a full-fact basis, concerned abuse of a child between 1 July 2009 and 26 November 2012. The child was six when the abuse began and nine when it ended. The judgment described repeated sexual abuse, including oral, digital and anal penetration. The victim’s brother disclosed the abuse to an aunt in a car, prompting an inquiry.
The sentencing court heard that the abuse had a profound and continuing impact on the victim, including ongoing psychotherapy, fear, and effects on academic achievement and emotional development. It identified the victim’s young age, the breach of trust, the progressive and regular nature of the abuse, and its effects as aggravating factors. The judge treated the guilty plea as the sole significant mitigating factor, though one deserving significant weight, and suspended part of the 18-year rape sentence.
On appeal, R.K. argued that the sentences were disproportionate and out of line with comparable cases. The prosecution acknowledged that making the entire reduction from the headline sentence conditional was a departure from the usual approach, while emphasizing the gravity of the offending.
The Court of Appeal considered the 18-year starting point significantly out of line with sentences in other cases and said 15 years was a more appropriate starting point. It also found that the trial judge had departed from the usual practice by addressing the guilty plea only through partial suspension. The court said the plea and other mitigating circumstances should first reduce the sentence, with suspension considered afterward.
Taking account of the plea, R.K.’s relative youth, family circumstances and work history, the court set the rape sentence at 12 years, with the final two suspended. It noted his reported progress in prison, including counselling and programmes. For sexual assault, the court said the original 13-year term gave little credit for the plea, though the offending was at the upper level of seriousness. It substituted eight years and ordered two years of post-release supervision. The judgment does not state the conditions attached to the suspended portion or the supervision.