"Dangerous" sexual predator jailed after raping two women in Luton
He carried out both his attacks in 2018 within three weeks of one another.
A sexual predator who raped and assaulted two women in Luton before fleeing the country to try and escape justice has been jailed for 18 years.
Mircea Cicalo, 22, of no fixed abode, fled to Romania after he was arrested in connection to one of the incidents, before being brought back to the UK and pleading guilty to two rapes.
Cicalo carried out both his attacks in 2018 within three weeks of one another.
At around 6.40am on Saturday 13 October, a passer-by called the emergency services after finding a woman in her 40s with facial injuries in distress in a ditch in Cromwell Road, Luton.
The woman, who required hospital treatment, had been seriously assaulted by a man who approached her on New Bedford Road, before raping her and leaving her in the ditch.
Despite officers’ enquiries, the man was not traced.
Then, in the early hours of 2 November, a woman in her 20s reported being raped and beaten by a man who had engaged her in conversation as she walked through Luton town centre.
Responding officers arrested a man within minutes of her 999 call after CCTV operators tracked him leaving the scene, but in interview Cicalo claimed it was consensual intercourse and denied the assault. He was bailed and officers continued the investigation.
As the investigation continued, in February 2019, Cicalo’s DNA profile was matched to the attack in October, but by this time he had fled the country and gone into hiding.
A European Arrest Warrant (EAW) was issued to aid the hunt for him, and in February 2021 he was extradited to the UK.
He pleaded guilty to the October 2018 rape but maintained his innocence in relation to the second offence. However, on the first day of trial, he amended his plea to guilty.
Cicalo was sentenced on Friday (26 August) at Luton Crown Court to serve 18 years in prison for both counts of rape. He will serve an additional six years on license and will not be considered for parole until he serves at least two thirds of his sentence.
At sentencing, the judge called Cicalo a “highly dangerous man who posed an ongoing significant risk to women”, adding he had “displayed no remorse or empathy and displayed misogyny to women in general.”
Detective Sergeant Paul Falcon, who led the investigation from Bedfordshire Police’s specialist Rape and Serious Sexual Offences (RASSO) team, said: “I truly commend the bravery of the victims who showed great courage in coming forward and staying on board with us to give their consistent accounts of what Cicalo had put them through.
“This was a lengthy and complex case, where we worked tirelessly to bring together two separate investigations across international borders.
“Cicalo has shown himself to be a dangerous and persistent sexual offender, preying on lone victims at night.
“We will never tolerate violence towards women and girls and will do everything we can to empower victims and bring perpetrators to justice.
“We will always be relentless and seek to prosecute anyone who commits rape or sexual offences, no matter how long it takes, and the sentence handed down here reflects the seriousness of Cicalo’s offending.”