Cwmbran man gets 18 months jail for sexual assault (From Free Press Series)

Cwmbran man gets 18 months jail for sexual assault

12:20pm Tuesday 19th February 2013 in News

A MAN was sentenced to 18 months imprisonment after pleading guilty to sexual assault.

Gethin Prout, 37, of Cae Derwen, Cwmbran, said he could not remember the incident but pleaded guilty to the charge when he appeared at Newport Crown Court.

But Judge Stephen Hopkins QC said although he did not know, he suspected that Prout was “clearly aware” of what he had done.

Prosecutor David Willow said Prout had begun to become “over amorous” with the victim at a pub on the night leading up to the incident and he told her he had “sniffed” something which turned out to be the drug mephedrone also known as MCat. The court heard Prout later offered the victim, who had also been drinking, some cannabis during the evening before later committing the offence.

The victim confided in a friend a few days later and then told her family, leading to Prout being arrested. He said he had no recollection of what had happened due to alcohol and drugs but then later went to the police voluntarily to make a further statement saying he couldn’t recollect the incident but would be pleading guilty to the offence when it came to court. Representing Prout, David Scutt said he had tried to recollect the incident so he could begin to try to explain it but could not and was shocked and upset when he was arrested.

He said Prout hadn’t touched alcohol since his arrest and had stopped his cannabis habit using a legal substitute instead.

Judge Hopkins said that in a victim impact statement, the victim said she felt scared and upset and had even thought about moving away from South Wales.

He sentenced Prout to 18 months imprisonment and also ordered him to sign the sex offenders’ register for ten years.

Prout was also made the subject of a ten-year restraining order banning him from contacting the victim and was also ordered to pay a £120 victim surcharge.