Yorkshire rapist told third victim 'I may as well make it a hat-trick'

A serial rapist who laughed and told his third victim: "I may as well rape you. I'm off to prison anyway so I may as well make it a hat-trick" has been jailed.

'Dangerous and manipulative' Craig Gladwin, 32, was already under investigation for at least one of the earlier rapes when he attacked his third victim, a court heard.

He strangled one woman to the point of unconsciousness during a “wicked campaign of rape”, prosecutors said.

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Gladwin, described as “manipulative” and “cocky”, raped the three women in separate incidents at properties in Selby and Goole.

Craig Gladwin has been jailed for lifeCraig Gladwin has been jailed for life
Craig Gladwin has been jailed for life

He was jailed for life at Hull Crown Court after he admitted treating women “like pieces of meat”.

Prosecutor Mark Kellet said he ignored one victim’s desperate pleas to “stop, please stop” as she tried to push him off.

Gladwin took his belt off and wrapped it around her neck but when she tried to loosen it, he tightened the noose as she struggled to breathe, the court was told.

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He then pinned her down and put his hands around her throat, leaning on her neck with his “full weight”. She pretended to be unconscious, but Gladwin slapped her twice and raped her.

The victim was unwell at the time having gone through a personal tragedy, the court heard.

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She initially kept quiet about the rape because she “didn’t want to relive the incident” in the summer of 2018.

In September that year, Gladwin raped a second woman who was strangled until she lost consciousness.

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When she came round, he tried to get her into bed with him. She refused, but Gladman “insisted” and told her: “You’re not leaving this house alive.”

He then smashed her phone against a wall so she couldn’t contact anyone, locked the door so she couldn’t leave and threw her onto a bed, Mr Kellet told the court.

The “terrified” woman tried to push him off, but Gladwin overpowered her and raped her. The woman was left with bruising all over her body and hair loss.

Gladwin, whose former marriage had collapsed, was arrested and released under investigation or on bail.

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But in January 2020 he raped another woman whom he met online, the court heard.

Before raping her, Gladwin grabbed hold of her as she tried to get away and told her: “Well, to be honest with you, I may as well rape you: I’m off to prison anyway.”

She pleaded with him to stop but he told her that “she was not leaving”, the court heard.

The victim, who described Gladwin as a “wicked, scary” man, reported him to police and he was arrested again.

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In custody, he was quizzed about allegations made by all three victims but made "vehement denials", the court heard,

One of the women said she was now scared to go out and had stopped seeing her friends. She was still having nightmares about Gladwin and was now on medication.

Another victim said she had deteriorated mentally since her ordeal and had to take three months off work due to her injuries. She had suffered such acute anxiety that she ended up moving house.

She suffered nightmares and had “three years of “pain, anxiety and post-traumatic stress”. Her social life was now “just about non-existent”. She said she was horrified to discover that Gladman was still “living as a free man” when he went on to rape a third woman.

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Gladman ultimately admitted three counts of rape on the day his trial was due to be held in March, along with two counts of damaging property.

He denied two other rape allegations and one of sexual assault. These allegations were allowed to lie on court file.

Gladman, of Selby, appeared for sentence on November 1 after being remanded in custody.

The father-of-two has a previous conviction for assaulting a police officer and two cautions for ABH and battery, the court heard.

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Lewis Allan Kerr, mitigating, said Gladman had behaved “abominably” but had anger, alcohol and mental-health issues.

A pre-sentence probation report noted that Gladman had a “perfect childhood”.

But he told officers that after his marriage ended, he “wanted to have some fun” and that he “treated women as pieces of meat”.

Recorder Richard Woolfall said it was the “worst case” of its kind that he had dealt with during his 10 years on the bench.

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He noted Gladman’s “willingness to use violence to get what he wants” and the “severe psychological impact” on the victims who had experienced “terrifying, violent and prolonged” ordeals.

He said Gladwin had shown a “total disregard for the (criminal) case”, while his demeanour in the dock suggested he “couldn’t have cared less”.

He told him: "You see (women) as sex things to meet your needs, as opposed to people with feelings.

“I consider your behaviour is so serious and manipulative and persistent that the risk you present will have to be managed for the rest of your life.”

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Mr Woolfall imposed a determinate jail sentence of 17-and-a-half years but told Gladman he would have to serve at least two-thirds of that behind bars, adding he “could spend the rest of your life in prison”.

It would be down to the Parole Board to decide if and when Gladman was safe to be released after serving the minimum term and he would remain on prison licence for life, with strict conditions, should he ever be set free.

Gladwin remained expressionless as he was led down to the cells by prison guards.