Home   Medway   News   Article

Shane Baldwin raped sleeping woman in Chatham home

A man, who claimed he just "fell" on top of a sleeping woman, raped her a jury has decided.

The victim woke to find Shane Baldwin from Chatham having sex with her, Maidstone Crown Court heard.

Maidstone Crown Court (15686417)
Maidstone Crown Court (15686417)

Now Baldwin, 31, of Goldcrest Drive, St Mary's Island, is facing a long prison sentence- after a judge ordered reports to assess what danger he poses to women.

Judge Adele Williams told him he had been convicted of rape by the jury on "clear and compelling" evidence - and remanded him into custody until October 11 for sentencing.

The victim had told the jury:“I woke up and saw Shane above me. I saw his hair coming down. I was confused because I’d been in a deep sleep. He was having sex with me.”

She added that she was drunk but capable of knowing what was going on.

“It was like he was trying not to wake me. I said: ' Shane, what’s going on?'. He then went back to his room. I went to the toilet and was sick.”

Judge Adele Williams (15686641)
Judge Adele Williams (15686641)

She called a friend and told her what had happened who advised her to leave and call a taxi.

She said: “I couldn’t stop crying. The Uber driver asked me what had happened. He asked me if I had been raped and I said yes.

He asked me if I wanted to go to a police station. I said no and went to my friend’s house.”

The woman later told police how in May 2017 she had met other friends, including Baldwin, and they all continued drinking, ending the evening in the Casino Rooms in Rochester.

They took a taxi back to Baldwin’s then house and she went straight to bed in the spare room.

“I felt I was going to a safe place,” she told the jury.

"He asked me if I had been raped and I said yes..."

Abigail Husbands, prosecuting, told the jury that the victim was given pyjama bottoms to wear in bed and she put those on over her pants. When she woke with Baldwin having sex with her the pyjama bottoms and her pants were missing.

Baldwin, who had denied rape, claimed he got up in the night and went to the toilet and went through the spare bedroom where the victim was sleeping on the way back to his room.

“I tripped on the edge of the bed and fell on top of her,”he claimed.

For information on how we can report on court proceedings, click here.

To read more of our in depth coverage of all of the major trials coming out of crown and magistrates' courts across the county, click here.

Read more: All the latest news from Medway

Close This site uses cookies. By continuing to browse the site you are agreeing to our use of cookies.Learn More