need to know
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A 67-year-old British man has been jailed for life for forcing a woman to have sex with more than 100 men over 30 years.
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On Friday, January 9, the sentencing judge described Rodney Johnston’s crime as “rape in all but name”.
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Johnston’s victim has spoken out for the first time, saying he made her feel “insulted” but now “for the first time in decades I’m free”
A British man has been jailed for life after being found guilty of forcing a woman to have sex with more than 100 men over 30 years.
Rodney Johnston, 67, was sentenced to life in prison with a minimum term of 16 years at a hearing at Norwich Crown Court on Friday, January 9, according to a press release from the BBC, Sky News and Norfolk Police.
Judge Alice Robinson called Johnston’s crime “rape in all but name” during Friday’s hearing, the BBC reported. “Being outside became synonymous with her being raped by a stranger,” Robinson said during Johnston’s sentencing, the outlet reported.
Johnston was found guilty last September of forcing a woman to have sex with more than 100 men in a remote rural area over 30 years from 1994 to 2024, during which time he also filmed the attacks, the BBC reported at the time.
The outlet reported that local authorities discovered more than 30,000 images and videos documenting the abuse suffered by the woman over the past three decades.
British prosecutors said Johnston used threats and intimidation to force the woman to have sex with the man, the outlet reported.
Norfolk Police said the abuse included “outings” where Johnston would take the woman “to secluded woodland or pre-arranged hotel rooms where the victim would be forced to have sex with multiple men”.
Stephen Pond/PA Image via Getty
Norwich Crown and County Court
He was found guilty of three counts of procuring a woman to engage in sexual activity by threats or intimidation, two counts of causing another person to engage in sexual activity without consent and one count of witness intimidation, according to Norfolk Police.
Authorities said they will continue to investigate Johnston’s crimes to determine whether others should be held accountable.
Senior investigating officer Duncan Woodhams told the BBC: “Our focus will now turn to establishing whether further criminality was committed and, if so, we will conduct a thorough investigation to identify those responsible and make every effort to bring them to justice.”
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The woman, who has not been identified, also reportedly spoke out against Johnston in court for the first time before his sentencing on Friday.
“For the first time in decades I am free,” she said, according to Norfolk police.
“I found myself in a situation I never imagined,” the victim added. “What I’m about to endure is something I wouldn’t wish on anyone. I have no voice, no choice.”
The woman called Johnston a “monster” who treated her as “nothing more than an object.”
“I felt dirty, sick, used, degraded, humiliated and scared – but this became my norm,” she told the court. “I no longer know who I am. Now I have to rebuild myself and I often feel lost and don’t know where to start. I am anxious about the future, but for the first time in decades I am free.”
If you or someone you know is a victim of sexual abuse, call the Crisis Text Line at 741-741 and text “STRENGTH” to be connected with a certified crisis counselor.
Read the original article on People
