Man jailed for stranger sexual assault in Launceston
A man has been jailed for three years for a terrifying sex attack on a teenage girl in a Launceston alleyway.
Bulgarian national Yordan Stanchev, 26, of no fixed abode, appeared at Truro Crown Court for sentence on Thursday 2 April having pleaded guilty to sexual assault.
Stanchev – who will likely be deported after his sentence – must also sign the Sex Offenders’ Register for life. A restraining order was in place to protect the victim, aged 17.
The court heard how the offence took place at around 9.15pm on Sunday 25 January in an alleyway near to Launceston College.
On the evening in question the victim – who did not know Stanchev - was walking in the area when she noticed him following her.
As he sprinted towards her, she screamed and tried to run away. However, Stanchev caught up with her, pushed her against a metal fence and sexually assaulted her.
Despite being terrified, the victim bravely fought her attacker and injured his face.
As a result of the victim fighting back and Stanchev possibly being disturbed by a dog walker, he fled the scene and the victim was able to run to a place of safety.
Police were then called by a relative of the victim and officers immediately deployed to the vicinity where an area search was conducted.
The victim was able to describe Stanchev and it was established that he had made a call to Police not long before the attack, saying that he’d been attacked outside of Lidl.
Officers aware of the earlier allegation arranged to meet Stanchev and he was located with an injury to his face matching the one that the victim described inflicting on him as she attempted to escape.
Stanchev was immediately arrested and his phone was determined to have been in the area of the offence at the time.
The victim was able to positively identify Stanchev as her attacker and he was promptly arrested, charged and remanded.
At the sentencing hearing, Judge Simon Carr described the offence as “every woman’s worst nightmare”, adding that Stanchev followed the victim until she arrived in a remote area before launching “a sustained and terrifying attack”.
Judge Carr went onto state that the victim showed exceptional bravery in fighting off Stanchev who intended to commit an even more serious offence.
Stanchev, Judge Carr continued, possessed misogynist views and targeted the victim at random as revenge for him believing his wife was having an affair.
Police Staff Investigator Jo Wilson said: “This was an utterly terrifying attack for the victim, but thankfully stranger attacks of this nature remain rare here in Devon and Cornwall.
“I would like to thank the victim for her bravery and her prompt call to the Police which helped the officers to quickly locate and arrest the suspect a short time later.
“It was due to her actions, and possibly also the presence of a dog walker, that Stanchev did not go on to commit further sexual offences.
“We all should be able to walk freely outside whenever we wish without fear of violence or attack.
“I would like to reassure the public that Police take every report of sexual assault very seriously and we will do all we can to keep our communities safe.
“This is evidenced in the fact that Stanchev was arrested and taken into custody within hours of the offence being committed.
“As well as the victim in the case, we’d like to thank the dog walker, and other witnesses who supported the investigation.”
Support available
If you have been affected by this article there is support available.
You can visit victimcare-dc.org to access support services and information on your rights and how to navigate the criminal justice system.
You can also call Victim Support on 0808 1689 111 or Devon and Cornwall Police’s Victim Care Unit on 01392 475900.
Advice and support can also be found at:
National Rape Crisis Helpline 0808 802 9999
Devon and Cornwall Sexual Assault Referral Centres (SARC) 0300 3034626
For more information please visit: www.dc.police.uk/Rape-SexualAssault
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