Brighton rapist jailed for 15 years

A man has been for 15 years after he was convicted of raping two women in Brighton and sexually assaulting another.

Abdoulie Jobe, 29, unemployed, of Harmsworth Crescent, Hangleton, struck three times in just over a month last summer.

Jobe was jailed by Judge Anne Arnold at Chichester Crown Court last week after being found guilty by a jury of carrying out sex attacks on three women.

Sussex Police said today (Monday 31 October): “A man has been convicted and sentenced over serious sexual offences against three women at addresses in Brighton.

“Abdoulie Jobe, 29, unemployed, of Harmsworth Crescent, Hove, was convicted at Chichester Crown Court on Wednesday 26 October after a seven-day trial.

“He was found guilty of sexually assaulting a woman aged 19 on Tuesday 27 July last year, of the rape and false imprisonment of a woman aged 17 on Tuesday 24 August and of the rape of a woman aged 31 on Sunday 29 August.

“He was convicted of all charges and sentenced to 15 years imprisonment.

“The court heard how Jobe met his first victim in a night club in the city on the night of Tuesday 27 July. He would not leave her alone despite objections from her and her friends.

“He sexually assaulted her over her clothing before being ejected from the club. CCTV recorded the incident though it was not possible to identify him at the time.

“Yet barely a month later, at a flat in the city on the night of Tuesday 24 August, Jobe met his second victim and while they were briefly alone he raped her.

“Then, on the night of Saturday 28 August into Sunday 29 August, he met his third victim with friends while drinking outside a club on the seafront.

“The group went back to a flat where Jobe raped her while escaping the attention of the others.

“The prosecution, authorised by the CPS (Crown Prosecution Service), followed an investigation by the Brighton and Hove Safeguarding Investigations Unit.”

Detective Constable Beth Griffiths said: “It was clear that Jobe was systematically preying on women who he met in the city, taking advantage of any momentary vulnerability to exploit them for his own sexual gratification.

“He has been in custody since we tracked him down last November after media appeals but the city is much safer now that he is off the streets for a long time.

“Our investigation eventually identified Jobe as the suspect for all three attacks. When arrested he gave various long accounts to try to explain away what had happened.

“But the evidence, including that from the three victims at court, was compelling.

“Jobe was a very intimidating character. The victim of his first rape was so frightened that initially she would not give many details.

“Only when she saw our media appeals trying to track him down for the second rape did she feel able to provide his details.”