Rapist cop heard ‘burping and hiccupping’ on tape as sufferer recorded sick intercourse assault
WARNING, DISTRESSING CONTENT: Former Merseyside Police Matrix officer Ryan Theaker has been convicted of rape after his victim’s secret audio recordings provided key evidence
Sick creep Ryan Theaker has been convicted of rape(Image: Liverpool ECHO)
A police officer’s sickening crimes were exposed thanks to the swift thinking of his courageous victim. Disgraced former Matrix officer Ryan Theaker, 30, was convicted of perpetrating a series of offences, including sexually assaulting and raping his victim within a hotel in Liverpool city centre.
The majority of the hotel rape evidence stemmed from two audio recordings on Theaker’s victim’s mobile phone. The sound files captured 85 minutes of Theaker’s attack in appalling detail, documenting his intoxicated aggression and her frantic appeals for him to cease and leave her be.
The audio recordings were presented to a jury at Liverpool Crown Court throughout Theaker’s eight-day trial. They were exceptionally distressing – among the most unsettling and shocking a seasoned crime correspondent has witnessed played within a courtroom – and demonstrated, as the prosecution informed the jury, a “dangerously violent” individual.
Family members wept in the gallery as the victim’s pleas for Theaker to stop were played on tape at Liverpool Crown Court(Image: Liverpool Echo)
The audio recordings provoked tears from the public gallery, where the victim’s relatives sat resolutely throughout the proceedings, as they endured listening to their loved one’s anguish, trauma and terror.
During the trial’s concluding arguments, where portions of the audio were replayed, the victim struggled to hold back tears and received comfort from her family.
After 10 hours and 41 minutes of deliberations, the jury of eight women and four men found Theaker, of Park Lane in Netherton, guilty of rape, sexual assault and assault by penetration.
Police praised the victim for coming forward and also for recording what would have been a terrifying ordeal(Image: James Maloney/Lancs Live)
During the audio recording, the victim can be heard repeatedly pleading with Theaker, a father-of-one, to “get off me, get off me”, reports the Liverpool Echo. Theaker’s belching, hiccupping and slurred speech can be heard as he makes demands.
Prosecutor Gareth Roberts informed the jury: “The defendant [refused] to listen to her, or comply with her wishes.” He continued: “We hear him threatening her, telling her to move her hands and expose her breasts to him, so that he could photograph her and touch her.”
He stated: “It is absolutely clear that she is not consenting.” Testifying in court from behind a curtain to enhance the quality of her evidence, the victim was questioned if she had fabricated any of the allegations.
She responded: “This doesn’t benefit me at all. I’m exposing my life. I’m embarrassing myself with what I’m saying. It’s [taken] me two years to realise I’ve got nothing to be embarrassed about. I don’t deserve that. I’m still damaged from it.”
Detective Sergeant Matthew McGuinness commented: “Theaker’s behaviour over a number of years was abhorrent. The fact that he is a former police officer and chose to deny the offences and force his victim to endure a trial is even more despicable.
“It is thanks to the bravery of his victim coming forward that we were able to build a successful case against him which led to his prosecution and sentencing. I hope this shows and reassures the public how seriously the courts take these offences and how Merseyside Police is completely committed to protecting anyone who has been subjected to such violence and sexual abuse.”
Judge Brian Cummings KC, presiding, told Theaker: “From the moment of the guilty verdicts you were liable as a matter of law to register as a sex offender. The precise duration will be decided as part of the sentencing hearing, but almost certainly it will be a lifelong requirement.”
The same jury also found Theaker not guilty of two offences and could not reach verdicts on two other allegations. He was remanded in custody to appear for sentencing on October 8.
The ECHO can now report Theaker’s convictions after the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) confirmed it was not pursuing a retrial on the remaining charges.
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