Man who raped woman used aliases to avoid police

Dominic Rowan was eventually located in Blackpool

A man who evaded police for five years using aliases after he raped a woman has been jailed.

In February 2017, a woman reported she had been raped in Bury St Edmunds by Dominic Rowan.

Rowan, 58, of no fixed abode, had been operating under an alias of Aaron Royer and evaded police with more names before he was located in 2022 in Blackpool.

He was found guilty of rape by a jury following a six day trial in March and sentenced on Friday at Ipswich Crown Court to 12 years in custody with a further six on licence.

Det Sgt Naomi Harger from the safeguarding and investigations team, based in Bury St Edmunds, said she hoped the sentencing demonstrated the force's "determination to secure convictions" regardless of when they took place.

"Rowan was determined to avoid capture by the police but this conviction makes very clear our commitment to prosecuting such offenders," she said.

"I hope that it also encourages anyone else who is a victim of this type of offence to have the confidence to come forward."

The officer commended the victim for her "courage, patience and quiet sense of dignity" shown throughout.

"It will have been a long and extremely challenging time for her so I hope this sentence will start to bring some closure for her, although what Rowan did will understandably never leave her," Det Sgt Harger added.