Police release picture of rapist who drugged and attacked girl, aged 14, in town centre

Liam Hodgson, aged 31, of Abbots Road, Lundwood, Barnsley, gave the vulnerable youngster a cigarette spiked with the cannabinoid drug spice in Barnsley town centre before taking her out of sight and anally raping her, according to a Sheffield Crown Court hearing.

Jonathan Sharp, prosecuting, told the hearing on August 5 that the 14-year-old was a vulnerable girl who had been wandering around the town centre around midnight on July 15 and 16 when she encountered the defendant on a bicycle with another man and she asked for a cigarette.

The complainant, who cannot be named for legal reasons, said she saw Hodgson put different coloured material in the cigarette, according to Mr Sharp, who claimed this was the synthetic cannabinoid drug spice which caused her to start hallucinating and wobbling.

Mr Sharp, who stated some of the incident was captured on CCTV, said: “The defendant can then be seen cycling after her and catching up with her and it’s plain to see she is wobbling.”

He added: “He put his arm around her and they walk off. They walked off out of camera range. It is not possible to say precisely what happened then but The Crown say it is shortly after that he annally raped her.”

Mr Sharp said: “It’s a case where he took advantage of her intoxification, and he had caused or contributed to it, and at a time when she was not in a position to consent.”

The complainant woke up bruised near the Town Hall with her pants torn and her bag and phone missing. After she complained to police, evidence of semen was found as well as traces of the synthetic cannabinoid in her system.

She stated the rape left her very upset and frightened and she has not been able to go into the town centre on her own for a very long time.

Hodgson, who has 23 previous convictions including robbery but nothing of a sexual nature, pleaded guilty to anally raping the 14-year-old.

Richard Davies, defending, said: “He knows he has got a lot of work to do with the authorities whilst in prison to re-set a lot of his attitudes and his entire mindset in respect of his behaviour.”

Mr Davies added that Hodgson has had problems with drug addction and homelessness and he has expressed remorse.

Judge Peter Kelson QC told Hodgson: “You encountered the victim when she was aged 14 and it was at night-time and she was on her own and she is described by the prosecutor as a troubled young lady.”

He added: “You knew you would take advantage of her and that is exactly what you did. You raped her anally and ejaculated inside her and you left her on the streets with her underwear down and her leggings down. You used her and threw her away as an irrelevance to you.”

Judge Kelson sentenced Hodgson to eight years of custody and made him subject to an indefinite Sexual Harm Prevention Order.