Two brothers who raped vulnerable girls 18 years ago have been jailed for 31 years, following a National Crime Agency (NCA) investigation.
Mark Evans, 37, and Robert Evans, 40, abused children in Rotherham over a two-year period starting in 2006.Today [28 March] at Sheffield Crown Court they were sentenced to 14 and 17 years’ imprisonment respectively for their crimes.
The men, aged 18 and 21 around the time, intimidated girls and plied them with drugs and alcohol before luring them to locations where they attacked them.
The brothers were arrested in August 2020 after officers from the NCA’s Operation Stovewood, examining historic sexual abuse in Rotherham, investigated allegations made by three victims.Specially-trained NCA officers spoke with the women after identifying they were potentially victims.Two of the women subsequently told specialist investigators they were raped by both brothers. One of them was 13 at the time. She was given alcohol by Mark Evans before she and some friends accompanied him to a disused barn. He then separated her from her friends and raped her.The same woman was attacked by Robert Evans several months later, when he lured the girl to a house in Rotherham by lying that one of her friends would be there.
Robert Evans plied her with alcohol as they took a bus to the house. Once Evans had the victim alone at the house, he raped her. She recalled he seemed amused by this.
Another woman related how she too was raped by both brothers when she was 14. She knew the men because they spent time with other girls her age.She recounted how Mark Evans walked her home one evening because it was dark, but as they passed through an alleyway he raped her.
She and the first victim were later lured by Robert Evans to a house, on a separate occasion to when the first victim was attacked by him. At the house, Robert Evans forced the second girl into a bathroom and raped her.
The third victim was age 13 when Mark Evans began grooming her by giving her alcohol and drugs, and calling her his “girlfriend”. The victim told officers how Mark Evans visited her at her home and asked her for sex. Fearing Evans would dump her, the girl complied with his request, and he took her into an alleyway where he had sex with her.
These were just some of the sexual offences committed against the girls which the men denied when NCA investigators arrested them.
However, following a two-week trial at Sheffield Crown Court the brothers were found guilty of a number of sexual offences, including rape, on 4 December 2024.
Speaking after the sentencing, NCA Senior Investigator Kim Boreham said: “I would like to recognise the courage and strength of the three victims in this case. For almost twenty years these women have suffered the profound consequences of Mark and Robert Evans’ crimes, while the two men continued their lives as normal.
“These brave women have been determined to receive justice and the National Crime Agency has matched their resolve, ensuring the Evans brothers have been held to account.“I hope the victims will find some peace in knowing their attackers are no longer living free today.
“I encourage anyone who was sexually abused as a child, no matter how long ago, to report it to police. Every victim deserves justice.”
Samantha Thompson, Specialist Prosecutor, of the Crown Prosecution Service said: “The Evans brothers targeted and groomed young girls including with alcohol and drugs, for child sexual abuse and rape.
“The lifelong physical and emotional trauma caused to victims by men like the Evans brothers cannot be understated. This type of conduct has equally damaged the community confidence of Rotherham.
“We would like to thank the victims in this case for coming forward and reporting this devastating crime. I hope this conviction sends a clear message that the CPS will continue to relentlessly pursue justice and prosecute those who sexually exploit children, whenever that abuse took place.
“I encourage any victims of child sexual abuse and sexual violence to report the crimes committed against them to the police. You are not alone and there is always help available.”
Adults can report sexual abuse suffered as a child by calling police on 101, or reporting it in person at a police station.
-Advertisement-
Grab our latest Magazine, "Ayodele Akintunde, SAN: Legal Titan Celebrates and Reflects on His Life Journey.". Get your order fast and stress free.
For more details about Newswire Law&Events Magazine, kindly reach out to us on 08039218044, 09070309355. Email: newswiremagazine@yahoo.co.uk. You will be glad you did
