‘Monster’ - Britain’s most prolific rapist is jailed

Police believe that Reynhard Sinaga targeted at least 190 victims

reynhard-sinaga.jpg
Reynhard Sinaga

Britain's most prolific serial rapist was jailed for life yesterday after drugging at least 48 men and filming himself sexually assaulting them while they were unconscious.

Reynhard Sinaga was jailed for 60 years and must serve a minimum of 30 years in custody before he can be considered for parole.

Across four separate trials, he was found guilty of 136 counts of rape, eight counts of attempted rape, 14 counts of sexual assault, and one count of assault by penetration, against a total of 48 victims.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

However, police say they have evidence that the 36-year-old Indonesian national targeted at least 190 victims.

The court heard that he would wait for men leaving Manchester nightclubs and bars before leading them to his flat with an offer of somewhere to have a drink, charge their phone or call a taxi.

He then drugged them with GHB or other substances and assaulted them. When the victims woke up many of them had no memory of what had happened.

Sinaga, who denied the charges, insisted that the sexual activity was consensual and claimed that each man had agreed to being filmed while pretending to be asleep.

Judge Suzanne Goddard QC said Sinaga’s claims were “ludicrous,” adding that he “preyed upon young men” who wanted “nothing more than a good night out with their friends”.

She said the “scale” of Sinaga's offending meant it was “accurate” for one of his victims to have described him as a monster.

“In my judgment you are a highly dangerous, cunning and deceitful individual who will never be safe to be released,” she told him. The decision to release prisoners is made by the Parole Board.

Sinaga was caught in 2017 when one victim, who regained consciousness while being assaulted, fought him off and notified the police.

Ian Rushton, deputy chief crown prosecutor for the North West, described Sinaga as “the most prolific rapist in British legal history”.

He added: “His extreme sense of sexual entitlement almost defies belief and he would no doubt still be adding to his staggering tally had he not been caught.”

–––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––For a round-up of the most important stories from around the world - and a concise, refreshing and balanced take on the week’s news agenda - try The Week magazine. Start your trial subscription today –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––

Continue reading for free

We hope you're enjoying The Week's refreshingly open-minded journalism.

Subscribed to The Week? Register your account with the same email as your subscription.