Man jailed for raping woman in cemetery in Exeter

Cosmin-Nicolae Vasioiu was jailed for raping a woman in a cemetery

A man who followed a woman walking home from a night out and raped her in a cemetery has been jailed for 18 years.

Cosmin-Nicolae Vasioiu saw the woman in the centre of Exeter in the early hours and stalked her leading up to the attack in St Bartholomew's cemetery.

Vasioiu, 47 and from Romania, was found guilty of rape when he went on trial at Exeter Crown Court in May.

At the trial the jury heard that he had committed a similar rape while previously living in Switzerland.

'Clear and chilling'

CCTV footage seen by the jury showed Vasioiu lurking in Exeter High Street in the early hours of 18 June 2022 trying to identify possible targets.

He then followed the victim, a local woman in her 30s, to the Iron Bridge area of the city, at one point breaking into a jog to keep her in sight.

The court heard how the victim had fought back against her attacker and DNA found under her fingernails helped to secure the conviction.

The court heard Vasioiu shaved off his long hair after the attack to change his appearance and destroyed evidence linking him to the crime.

Vasioiu was sentenced to 18 years in jail and five years on licence.

Upon sentence, the judge, Recorder Malcolm Galloway, said the CCTV footage obtained from the city centre by police was "clear and chilling".

Victim 'not coping'

He said: "You were patrolling Exeter city centre looking for lone vulnerable women.

"The CCTV shows you walking around, stopping outside late night drinking establishments and observing them from doorways.

"I have no doubt you were waiting for an opportunity to present itself."

He said the attack and its aftermath had a "profound and prolonged effect" upon the victim.

He said she is "plainly not coping" a year after the incident and she is "not the vibrant young woman she used to be".

Following the sentencing, Det Sgt Samantha Wenham, from the Major Crime Investigation Team, said: "He preyed on a lone female who he had never met and subjected her to a vicious attack without remorse.

"This was a calculated and planned act for which Vasioiu has shown absolutely no remorse throughout."

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