Blade Silvano: Woman who posed as man jailed for sex assaults

Blade Silvano denied two counts of assault by penetration

A "calculated" woman who posed as a man to trick another woman into having sex with her has been jailed for more than 10 years.

Blade Silvano, 41, made a fake dating profile on Plenty of Fish in 2016, a judge told Cambridge Crown Court.

Silvano, of Bishop's Castle, Shropshire, used "careful deception" to convince her victim she was a man.

The defendant was found guilty of two counts of assault by penetration during a trial last May.

Judge Philip Grey also placed her on the sex offenders registers indefinitely.

Silvano had sex with the victim twice using a strap-on sex toy, concealing her lower body with an oversized t-shirt.

Her victim "saw a future" with Silvano but was left "horrified" when she finally discovered her true identity on Facebook.

Silvano continued to mislead her victim in an "unspeakably cruel" manner for about 18 months, claiming she was a British military officer, sending pictures of herself appearing to wet shave, and even suggesting she wanted to get married.

Silvano was sentenced at Cambridge Crown Court

The court heard that the victim had tried on wedding dresses with her sister.

However, Silvano claimed to have never met the victim, telling a jury the relationship was based on fantasy and online roleplay.

The judge said: "You managed your appearance carefully to look like a man.

"You deliberately set out to deceive her (and) did so in the most reprehensible way.

"She was convinced she was having sex with a man. You achieved this with a series of careful deceptions. Her consent is null and void."

The pair met in Peterborough, where the victim lived, and were in a sexual relationship for more than a year.

The judge said: "During the course of that relationship, you told lie after lie. You told her you were a British army officer and you were not, nor have you ever been.

"You sent pictures of you in military fatigues and appearing to wet shave.

Blade Silvano has been jailed for more 10 years and six months

"This was a fantasy you were playing out for your own selfish enjoyment."

'Unspeakably cruel'

Judge Grey also said it was not a case of gender dysphoria but of using "deceit and lies" to achieve sexual gratification, describing Silvano's actions as "calculated".

He added: "You continued to string her along and that was unspeakably cruel. Your lying was constant".

Det Con Leeza Phillips, who investigated, said: "This was an extraordinary investigation and unlike any case I've seen before in Cambridgeshire.

"Silvano carried out the ultimate deception and has caused extreme distress to her victim.

"Without the full facts, the victim was not able to give her consent to a sexual relationship and this whole situation has left her feeling violated and traumatised.

"I hope the victim and her family can now find some closure from this traumatic period."