Description
A man who followed a woman through Long Eaton before attempting to rape her has been jailed.
Paul Jinks stalked the woman as she walked home from a night out in in July 2024.
As she reached Darwin Road, he grabbed her from behind and put his hand over her mouth, telling her not to shout.
The woman attempted to break free and fight him but fell on the floor. Jinks then picked her up and dragged her backwards to a secluded grassy area where he hit her in the face and sexually assaulted her before attempting to rape her.
The woman’s cries for help were heard by the residents of a nearby house who yelled at Jinks to leave her alone and ran out on to the street to help.
Jinks then fled the scene, running through a nearby garden as he escaped. The homeowner called police after seeing him on their property. Officers attended the scene and found blood stains on a broken bin Jinks had climbed on as he ran away.
CCTV footage from the area showed Jinks had followed the woman for some time before the attack. He was also seen following at least two other women before the incident.
The blood was tested and found to belong to Paul Jinks, who was believed to be living in the Cambridgeshire area on a traveller’s encampment. Officers in Cambridgeshire were asked to help with arrest attempts and the 21-year-old was arrested on 24 July, ten days after the attack.
He was subsequently charged with attempted rape.
Jinks, of no fixed address, admitted the offence and appeared at Nottingham Crown Court for sentence on 7 February when he was jailed for eight years and nine months with an extended licence period of six years. He was also placed on the Sex Offenders Register for life.
In a victim impact statement, the woman described the effect the incident has had on her: “Since this has happened I don’t feel like I will ever be able to go out on my own again, at least not anytime soon.
“I feel like I would be terrified doing this and constantly looking behind my shoulder wondering who may appear behind me.
“I have heard about these things happening but I never thought that this would happen to me.”