A Brighton man has been jailed for 15 years for raping a woman in Kemp Town.
Patrick Geary, 40, of Warwick Mount, Montague Street, Brighton, was jailed yesterday having been found guilty of two counts of rape at an earlier hearing.
He also tried to rape another woman.
Geary was told that he faced an indeterminate sentence so he will not be released if he is still thought to pose a risk to the public.
He was also told that he must serve at least six years in prison before he can even be considered for release.
Geary’s first known victim, a 21-year-old local woman, reported him to the police in February 2007.
She had been out partying in a Kemp Town nightclub when she met him.
She went back to Geary’s flat with a friend where she passed out in an armchair.
Despite the efforts of her friend, she could not be roused to go home.
The friend then left the flat warning Geary that she would be back for her friend and saying that she knew where he lived.
The victim awoke about an hour later to find Geary trying to rape her.
She kicked him away and he stopped.
When she left the address she went straight to the police station and reported the incident.
Police arrested and interviewed Geary who denied trying to rape her.
Because there was no witness to the attack, Geary was not charged on this occasion and was released pending further inquiries.
The second victim, a 23-year-old woman, was at a family barbecue on Saturday 6 June 2009.
She left around 10pm feeling quite drunk.
She sat on a street in Kemp Town talking to a friend on her mobile when Patrick Geary approached her.
He took her back to his flat and gave her a cup of tea.
The victim says her memory then went blank and the next thing she remembers is Geary raping her twice.
She fled his flat and reported the attack to police.
Patrick Geary was identified by his DNA and promptly arrested.
While on bail, police reopened the 2007 attempted rape allegation and the Crown Prosecution Service reviewed both cases.
Geary was then charged with two rapes and attempted rape and was remanded in custody.
Throughout his trial at Hove Crown Court, which lasted nearly two weeks, Geary was hostile and derogatory to all prosecution witnesses.
He was sent down to the cells on several occasions for his unruly behaviour.
Throughout the trial Geary denied the allegations, claiming that the second woman had become like a “she-wolf” and had forced him into sex.
He also claimed that the other woman was lying and trying to set him up.
When he was sentenced yesterday, at Inner London Crown Court, he was put on the sex offenders register for life.
Detective Constable Tim Craig, of Sussex Police, said: “I am grateful to everyone who assisted in this investigation and would like to pay tribute to the two victims, who have both shown great courage, bravery and strength of character in coming forward and giving evidence.
“Justice has been done and I hope that the knowledge that Geary has received a substantial sentence and will no longer be a danger to the public will offer some comfort to the victims and they will be able to move on with their lives.”
