Man jailed for 15 years for violent offences in Jaywick
Steven Anderson's victim has thanked Essex Police for its support
A man has been jailed for 15 years for violent offences in Jaywick.
34-year-old Steven Anderson, of no fixed address, imprisoned a woman at an address in the town on 13 December 2019.
He held her hostage, threatening her with a meat cleaver and smashed a TV.
The jury at his trial last year heard the woman, who is aged in her 50s, was too scared to seek help.
When she saw Anderson again, on 2 January last year, he attacked her with a hammer and beat her before raping her at knifepoint.
The woman was able to get to the safety of her family the following day and we were called.
Anderson then went on the run, fleeing the county before being arrested in Homerton three weeks later.
He was charged with several offences and, on Wednesday 2 December, following a trial at Chelmsford Crown Court was convicted of two counts of rape, causing grievous bodily harm with intent, making threats to kill, false imprisonment, assault by beating, and criminal damage.
Today (2 March) he was jailed for 15 years for each rape, 4 years for causing grievous bodily harm with intent, 4 years for making threats to kill, 4 years for false imprisonment, 5 months for assault by beating, and 3 months for criminal damage – to serve concurrently – and to serve a further 6 years on licence.
The victim, who cannot be named for legal reasons, encouraged other victims to come forward. She said: "I’m so grateful to Essex Police for their commitment to making sure I got justice, and that I remained safe at all times.
"I urge anyone suffering from abuse – whether it be physical, emotional, or sexual – to come forward and report these crimes.
"The support I received, particularly from Detective Constable Liv Howells and Meg from the C.A.R.A. team was invaluable.
"Even though it seems scary at the time, please, please report these crimes and get the justice you deserve."
Investigating officer Detective Constable Liv Howells, from the North Adult Sexual Abuse Investigation Team, said: "Steven Anderson put his victim through an unimaginable ordeal on two separate occasions.
"I want to praise the victim who has shown incredible bravery by coming forward and telling us what happened.
"She gave us in-depth accounts and I cannot thank her enough for her courage and co-operation throughout our investigation. It must have been incredibly difficult to recount what had happened to her.
"We have worked tirelessly on this case, to ensure we get justice for her, and to ensure Anderson is not able to commit further crimes against women.
"He will spend a significant amount of time behind bars and Essex is a safer place for this."