Rapist who attacked woman in her own home jailed

Louis Walters was jailed at Sheffield Crown Court on Friday

A man broke into a woman's home, threatened to kill her partner and then raped her at knife point, a court has heard.

Louis Walters, of Edward Street Flats in Sheffield, pleaded guilty to a series of charges, including rape and making threats to kill, following the attack in Sheffield on 21 January.

At Sheffield Crown Court on Friday, 37-year-old Walters was jailed for nine years and six months.

The Recorder of Sheffield, Judge Jeremy Richardson KC, told the defendant that his conduct that day had been "monstrous".

Warning, this article contains distressing details.

The court heard how Walters had taken cocaine before arriving at the property with a knife in his pocket in the early hours of 21 January.

He kicked down the door and threatened to kill the victim's partner before attacking her and throwing her across the room.

The court heard the victim tried to hide from Walters by locking herself in the bathroom but he broke down the door and stole her phone.

At knife point, he then forced her to perform a sex act on him and threatened people would come after her if she called the police.

• If you've been affected by the issues in this story, help and support is available via the BBC Action Line.

He ran off after the attack but was arrested a short time later and found to be in the possession of cannabis.

Walters pleaded guilty to rape, theft, making threats to kill, possession of a Class B drug, damage to property, assault occasioning actual bodily harm and assault by beating.

The court heard the attack had severely affected the victim's mental health and had left her a "highly anxious individual".

Listen to highlights from South Yorkshire on BBC Sounds, catch up with the latest episode of Look North or tell us a story you think we should be covering here.