David Robson subjected two lone women to separate terrifying violent sex attacks within minutes of each other after they had both been to the Come Together music festival
A predator turned two women’s worst fears into reality by subjecting them to separate horrifying sexual assaults within minutes. Both victims had attended the Come Together music festival on Newcastle’s Town Moor last summer and found themselves alone, disoriented and vulnerable in the early hours.
As they sought safety near the BBC Newcastle studios, they crossed paths with dangerous serial sex offender David Robson, who launched shocking attacks on them.
Newcastle Crown Court heard how the first victim, a 24-year-old woman, had attended the music event on 22 August last year, featuring Kings of Leon. Following an argument with her partner, he ordered a taxi, but she refused to get in due to their disagreement.
With her phone battery running low, she decided to walk, hoping her partner would return for her. Unfamiliar with Newcastle, she recognised the BBC Newcastle building and felt somewhat safe due to the visible security cameras on the premises.
Prosecutor Jane Waugh explained that after about an hour, the woman began to feel cold and approached the BBC building around 1.30am, hoping to enter, but was told by security guards that this was not permitted. She then decided to continue walking, hoping to find a garage where she could charge her phone, reports Chronicle Live.
Miss Waugh stated: “She felt alone and vulnerable and began crying. She crossed the road at some traffic lights and saw a man staring at her. That was the defendant David Robson.”
Robson pursued her and seized her clothing and genital area in an aggressive and forceful manner. She heard him utter something and believed he branded her a s***, feeling he was mocking her.
The woman told him to “get off me, get away from me”. She returned to the BBC and hammered on the door.
Miss Waugh said: “Security guards saw the defendant coming towards her from behind despite her banging on the door for help. The defendant bent down as if to pick her up in what the security guard thought would be a fireman’s lift manoeuvre.”
Upon spotting the security guards, Robson chose not to proceed and fled. Miss Waugh said: “It appears she narrowly escaped being carried away by the defendant.”
The second victim, 54, had also attended the music festival that evening and had similarly fallen out with her partner, finding herself alone. They had parked their car in Gosforth, with her mobile inside it, so she chose to walk back to retrieve it.
Struggling to find her way, she recognised her vulnerability and attempted to remain in well-illuminated areas but this proved challenging. Eventually, she detected someone running behind her on the road where the BBC building stands, which was dark and silent.
Miss Waugh said: “She thought the person might be a jogger but suddenly there was an arm coming around her neck and she was pulled to the ground and dragged to the side then she felt blows to the back of her head and face and knew she was in trouble.
“He grabbed her by the neck with one hand and put the other hands up her skirt, ripping her knickers with such force the gusset was torn.”
She then experienced a brutal violation as he made disgusting sexual remarks and licked inside her ear, appearing “frantic”.
He continued to strangle her as she attempted to yell and scream for assistance and told him to get off her. Miss Waugh stated: “The defendant seemed to be trying to drag her off the path and pull her into bushes.
“He repeatedly punched her, he squeezed her throat to the point she couldn’t breathe. It was a prolonged attack. He dragged her down a bank away from any passing help. She thought of her children. She genuinely believed he was about to kill her.
“She tried to talk to him, to reason with him. He continued dragging her.”
Miss Waugh said that when Robson momentarily loosened his grip, the victim “with a superhuman effort” managed to escape from him and ran up the road flagging cars down until one stopped to assist, with Robson fleeing towards the BBC.
The woman was left with scrapes and bruises on her body, a swollen throat, a black eye, scratches on her face and body, and a bump on the back of her head. Her breathing was affected for some time afterwards and she had difficulty swallowing.
The first victim read out a victim impact statement in court, saying: “What that stranger did to me has affected me every day since it happened and I think it will continue to affect me for the rest of my life.
“I always worry about how much worse it could have been had I not been able to run away and get help.”
She further expressed that the incident has left her feeling reluctant to visit Newcastle again unless absolutely necessary. She stated: “The events have completely changed the way I live my life.
“His actions will continue to affect me every single day for the rest of my life.”
The second victim revealed: “I was a victim of an attack by a stranger in the dark in which I was repeatedly punched, dragged into undergrowth, sexually violated and strangled.
“I believed I could die at the hands of David Robson. Eventually I was safe due to the concerned passer-by who was brave enough to stop his car whilst others hadn’t.”
She also shared that she has been left with PTSD, became a “virtual recluse” and contemplated suicide many times “to escape the exhausting trauma in my head”.
However, the woman told the court: “I fought back and will continue to do so to be myself again. I stand here not as a victim but as a strong and determined survivor.”
Robson was identified as the offender after leaving DNA on both victims.
The court was informed that Robson has 21 previous convictions, including seven for sex offences. In 2016, he received a community order for sexual assault after lunging at a female jogger training for the Great North Run early one morning and grabbing her between the legs.
For the latest offences, he admitted sexual assault, assault by penetration and strangulation. He was imprisoned for 12-and-a-half years with an extended licence period of a further four years.
He must also sign the sex offenders register for life and was given a sexual harm prevention order and restraining orders. Judge Gavin Doig, who described Robson as posing a “very high risk of serious harm”, told him: “These are offences of the utmost seriousness. It’s the stuff of nightmares for any woman to be violently sexually attacked at night by a stranger.
“Fortunately such attacks are rare, however when they do occur, any perpetrator must expect to be severely punished.
“It’s the act of a coward to identify, approach and attack a lone female at night. I contrast the defendant’s cowardice with the courage shown by both victims.
“Had the victims not acted so bravely in coming forward, the defendant would still be in the community, a real danger to all women, instead of in prison where he belongs. All I can do is commend and thank the women and I wish them both well in the future.”
Defence counsel Penny Hall stated that he “can’t fully remember the events” due to drug use but accepts responsibility.