Woman 'feared she would die' when rapist kidnapped her during Leeds-flat escape bid

The chilling footage was used to help convict Pa Gomez who went on to rape the woman twice, threaten her with violence and even bit her before she could finally escape for good. She had been initially lured to his flat with the promise that she could charge her phone.

Gomez, 27, was found guilty after a trial at Leeds Crown Court of two counts of rape, sexual assault and false imprisonment.

In an impact statement, bravely read out by the victim herself during a sentencing hearing today, she said: “I have to live with what you did. I never want to feel the fear I felt that day again.

“Some would call me lucky for making it out alive. I have to live with the memory of what he did to me.

“I wish I could forget his name. I wish I could forget his face and the hours he did not let me leave and the feeling of not knowing what was going to happen, but I can’t.

“I would do anything to forget the feeling of his hands on me. He did not stop no matter how many times I asked. I thought he would kill me. I was sure I was going to die.”

The court heard that the 19-year-old victim was on her way to meet a friend on June 16 last year when she encountered Gomez. He offered to charge her phone for her at his flat on Marlborough Towers, Park Lane, Woodhouse.

On their way, the encountered another of Gomez’s friend who joined them at his flat.

Gomez began to make comments towards the woman, calling her his “dream girl” and saying he wanted her to be his girlfriend. Gomez had taken ketamine and crack cocaine with his behaviour becoming more “aggressive”.

He made the terrified woman sit on his knee and wanted his friend to leave so he could be alone with her, but but even his friend had become concerned and wanted the woman to leave to ensure her safety.

His friend eventually left and later phoned the police.

At one point the woman was able to get free, got into the lift and made it down to the ground floor, only for Gomez to catch her and carry her back upstairs. The footage was played during his trial in January, but he maintained he had done nothing wrong.

He then raped the woman twice, threatened her with violence, telling her she was a “one-punch knockout” and bit her several times on her neck and genitals.

Following the call to police, officers turned up but were unable to locate Gomez or the woman. She was eventually permitted to leave his flat telling him she had a GP appointment. Her ordeal had lasted for hours, the court was told.

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Gomez was eventually arrested, but told officers that it was consensual.

Despite the overwhelming evidence, he maintained his not-guilty pleas and was eventually convicted by the jury after a five-day trial. He has no previous convictions.

Mitigating, Shila Whitehead said Gomez had now finally accepted his guilt and had remorse.

Appearing in court today via video link from HMP Leeds, he was told by Judge Ray Singh that he rejected his remorse, saying he ample opportunities to concede, especially given the CCTV evidence from the block of flats.

He jailed him for 13 years and put him on the sex offender register for life.