Man who 'dressed as a woman' to assault victim, jailed

Officers found two blonde wigs, a pair of fake breasts and a mobile phone with video footage of the assault taking place when Wayne Rogers was arrested

A man who dressed as a woman to sexually abuse a drunken 20-year-old man has been jailed.

Wayne Rogers, now 48, sexually assaulted the victim, who had been drinking over a five-hour period, and had fallen over in the centre of Bishop's Stortford in Hertfordshire near to the Essex border, in September 2022.

When he was arrested, on 4 November 2022, officers found two blonde wigs, a pair of fake breasts and a mobile phone with video footage of the assault taking place.

Appearing at St Albans Crown Court, Rogers, of Plaw Hatch Close, Bishop's Stortford, was sentenced to 10 years in prison and told he must register as a sex offender for life and abide by the terms of a sexual harm prevention order.

At his latest trial last year, prosecutor Mark Trafford KC said: "He [Rogers] is a sexual predator that picks on drunk men and deceives them by being dressed as a woman."

He added said the victim had escorted a friend to a car, where she was picked up and taken home, before the incident.

After he fell over, Rogers spotted the man and led him to his car where he was driven a short distance away and sexually assaulted.

Mr Trafford said: "It was without any consent whatsoever. It was degrading and he was left at 5am in the morning somewhere. He woke up on a patch of grass."

'Easy prey for you'

Rogers appeared for sentencing at St Albans Crown Court on Tuesday, after he was convicted by a jury in September 2023 of assault by penetration, two offences of sexual assault and two offences of causing a person to engage in sexual activity without consent.

Judge Sheridan said: "He was an easy prey for you. There was a degree of planning. You went out dressed with your fake breasts and wig."