A “brutal” rapist who attacked a young woman on Christmas Day and then fled the country has been caught and jailed after his mother tracked him down in Belgium.
Tudor Tofoi, 21, was locked up for 15 years for the violent rape of a woman in Dover, Kent, after his mother brought him back to the UK and handed him over to police.
He and an accomplice pounced on the woman as she walked home after a night out in the early hours of Christmas Day last year.
They dragged her into some garages and raped her, before fleeing when she managed to light up her phone.
Detectives managed to identify Tofoi, of High Street, Dover, from CCTV throughout the town shortly before the attack.
However, he managed to escape the country before being captured – and was only arrested after his mother found out he was in Belgium and travelled there to bring him back.
When interviewed by officers from the Kent and Essex Serious Crime Directorate, Tofoi denied rape and claimed to have had consensual sex with the victim.
However, a jury rejected his account and convicted him at Canterbury Crown Court last month. He was jailed for 15 years at the same court on Monday.
During sentencing, Judge Adele Williams said Tofoi had carried out “a violent and brutal rape” which caused his victim ongoing psychological harm.
Detective Inspector Lee Whitehead, the senior investigating officer from Kent and Essex Serious Crime Directorate, said: “This was a violent and cowardly attack on a vulnerable lady.
“I want to praise his victim who has been courageous throughout the entire process and together with the superb support from her family, has played an important part in getting this dangerous man convicted.”
