Three boys avoid prison over rapes of two girls which were filmed: ‘I’m grieving who I used to be’

One of the girls raped in a New Forest town has heartbreakingly revealed she felt she could “never get her innocence back” after an attack that was filmed.

Three teenagers escaped prison following two rapes in separate incidents in Fordingbridge, Hampshire, on 26 November 2024 and 17 January 2025.

At Southampton Crown Court on Thursday, a 15-year-old boy was sentenced to a three-year youth rehabilitation order with 180 days of intensive supervision and supervision for the rape of two girls and two charges of indecent images. The court heard he was diagnosed with ADHD and “long-standing anxiety”.

A second 15-year-old boy was given the same sentence on three counts of rape against each of the two victims and four counts of indecent photography related to the filming of the events. The court heard he also suffered from ADHD and had an IQ in the “bottom 1 per cent of his contemporaries”.

A third boy, aged 14, was given an 18-month youth rehabilitation order for two counts of rape for inciting the second defendant and making indecent images in the January incident. It was stated that he had “mild cognitive impairment”.

Judge Nicholas Rowland told the defendants: “I need to remember that you are not little adults. I need to think about how likely you are to do serious things again, and I need to make sure you don’t do serious things again in the future.”

Announcing his sentence, he added: “I must avoid needlessly criminalizing these children, understand the effects of their behavior and support their reintegration into society.”

He added that “peer pressure played a big role in what happened.”

The victim of the first rape went to court for sentencing and, shielded from the boys’ view, read a victim impact statement along with a poem she had written directed at her attackers.

He said his mental health has deteriorated since the incident and he has isolated himself from his friends.

“I was caught off guard, I never want that to happen again, I will never get that innocence back,” he said.

The poem included the lines: “All I want to do is die, I’m not afraid of when that will come anymore.”

She added: “No one deserves the trauma of being raped.”

In a statement read on behalf of the second victim, he said his attendance at school had been negatively affected, adding: “I often feel overwhelmed, anxious and emotionally drained to the point where sitting in class becomes unbearable.”

She described having nightmares and struggling to sleep, adding: “I feel ashamed of my own body, insecure and uncomfortable.”

“The person I was before the incident is completely gone, and sometimes I feel sorry for the person I used to be,” he said.

The judge praised the bravery of the two girls and told the first victim: “I hope that when you look at today’s history you can take some solace in the courage you had in coming to court.

“You and [the second girl] “We showed great courage by coming to the hearing and speaking like you.”

He added: “The sentence I impose cannot undo what happened to you.”

The children were also given a three-month curfew and given a 10-year restraining order preventing them from contacting their victims.

Prosecutor Jodie Mittel KC told the hearing that in the November incident, the girl, who was 15 at the time, visited the first defendant after meeting him on Snapchat.

The prosecutor said that after performing a sexual act on the boy, who was 14 at the time, he became “frightened and worried” when the second defendant joined them with a third boy, who was not charged.

Ms Mittel said the girl felt “cornered and trapped” and “petrified” as the two defendants raped her while the incident was being filmed.

Ms. Mittel said videos of the incident later circulated, with others making jokes about her and messages calling her a “slut.”

In the January incident, the 14-year-old complainant was raped in a field near the Fordingbridge rest area while the incident was also being filmed.

Rape Crisis offers support to those affected by rape and sexual abuse. You can call them in England and Wales on 0808 802 9999, in Scotland on 0808 801 0302 and in Northern Ireland on 0800 0246 991 or visit their website at: www.rapecrisis.org.uk. If you’re in the US, you can call Rainn at 800-656-HOPE (4673).