Swindon woman jailed for falsely accusing stranger of rape
- Published
Wiltshire Police said they were able to prove Sophie James fabricated her allegation of stranger rape
A 26-year-old woman has been jailed after falsely accusing a delivery driver of raping her.
Sophie James, of Frobisher Drive, Walcot, Swindon, pleaded guilty to perverting the course of justice after "fabricating" the crime in August 2019.
Det Con Chris Hughes of Wiltshire Police said the impact her behaviour had on the stranger she falsely accused "should not be underestimated".
She was sentenced at Swindon Crown Court to 14 months in prison.
Police said James originally reported a takeaway driver had attended her address to deliver food but instead forced his way into her property and raped her.
Det Con Hughes said reports of this nature were "always taken extremely seriously... [and] officers attempted to progress with extensive enquiries immediately following the initial report.
However, he said "James was obstructive and refused to co-operate with any requests by officers".
'Completely unacceptable'
Following further enquiries, they were able to prove James had "fabricated the report entirely" and the accused was in Bristol at the time she was reportedly raped by him in Swindon, which is about 40 miles (64km) away.
He said: "This type of behaviour is completely unacceptable and the impact it has on the person wrongly accused should not be underestimated.
"He was interviewed under caution and subject to a police investigation as part of our enquiries... [which] caused him a significant amount of stress," he added.
Det Con Hughes said false rape claims could also "really impact" genuine victims of rape or sexual assault who feared they might not be believed.
"My message to these people is please be reassured that police take all reports of this nature extremely seriously, and we would always encourage anyone who has been a victim, regardless of how much time has passed since the offence, to come forward and report it to police," he added.
As well as the 14 month prison sentence issued by the court on 24 January, James must also pay a £149 victim surcharge.
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