A man has been jailed for 20 years for violently attacking, strangling and sexually assaulting a stranger in her own home.
The victim, who cannot be named for legal reasons, suffered serious injuries in Goodwick, Pembrokeshire, on the evening of 24 May this year.
Benjamin Guiver, 34, of Fishguard, was arrested not far from the house shortly after the brutal assault.
A family member of the victim, who arrived home during the attack, intervened and was also injured.
Dyfed-Powys Police praised the bravery of the victim, as well as the family member who intervened and chased Guiver out the house.
Detective Chief Inspector Matthew Briggs said the woman was “badly injured” and “incredibly distressed”.
The victim told police she didn’t think she would survive the attack.
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She said she had fallen asleep watching TV and woke to find a man in her living room.
He said his name was Benjamin and that he had come “to rescue her”.
The victim asked who he was, but he told her “don’t ask any questions or I’ll kill you”.
The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) said the woman ran from the property but Guiver caught her, punched her, and dragged her back inside by her hair.
It was then he sexually assaulted her.
‘Haunt me for the rest of my life’
Police said Guiver had earlier tried to enter another house nearby.
He was later charged with sexual assault by penetration, grievous bodily harm with intent, intentional strangulation, trespass with intent to commit a sexual offence, threats to kill, and assault occasioning actual bodily harm.
He pleaded guilty to all the offences in July and was sentenced at Swansea Crown Court on Thursday.
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In an impact statement, the woman said she was a “a shell of her former self” and felt “lost, unsafe and on edge”.
She said her life had been “turned upside down” and she “no longer [felt] safe in [her] own home”.
“I want so desperately to go back to some kind of normality with my life, however, I know that what has happened is going to continue to haunt me for the rest of my life,” she added.
Jessie Walling, from the CPS, said in a statement: “The physical and sexual violence inflicted on this woman by a complete stranger in her own home was horrific.”
