A man has been jailed for six years for rape and sexual assault in Poole.
Anderson Cerqueira, 44 and of West Cliff Road in Bournemouth, was found guilty of rape and two counts of sexual assault at Bournemouth Crown Court on Thursday 21 December 2017. The jury returned a guilty verdict after five hours of deliberations. He was sentenced at the same court on Thursday 22 February 2018.
On Monday 31 July 2017 one of Cerqueira’s victims – a man aged in his 20s – was on a night out in Bournemouth. He made his way home at around 2.30am alone before calling for a taxi.
A short time later a gold-coloured Ford Focus approached the victim. He assumed this was the taxi he had ordered due to the colour of the car and got in. The car belonged to Cerqueira.
The car was driven to the Parkstone area of Poole and just as the victim was about to leave, Cerqueira pinned the victim back and sexually assaulted and raped him. The victim managed to escape on foot.
Due to the description of the offender and the vehicle, Cerqueira was identified and arrested a short time later at his home address.
On Sunday 11 August 2013 a second victim – a man aged in his 20s – was walking home from a night out in Bournemouth town centre, when he was approached by Cerqueira who was driving a gold-coloured Ford Focus. Cerqueira offered the victim a lift home, which he accepted, but during the journey the victim began to feel uncomfortable and asked to be dropped off. Cerqueira did not stop.
When Cerqueira eventually stopped in the Charminster area, he sexually assaulted his victim. He managed to get out of the car and run off. A partial car registration number was identified on CCTV and further enquiries showed the car was registered to Cerqueira. At the time the victim did not wish to pursue the allegation further, but the 2013 case was reopened following the similarities with the case in 2017. Officers visited the victim who said he would fully support the investigation.
Detective Constable Andy Hale, of Bournemouth CID, said: “I wish to praise the bravery of both victims for coming forward and supporting the investigation.
“Cerqueira is a predator who went out and targeted young lone men and subjected them to horrific sexual assaults. I hope the sentence handed out by the court will bring them some comfort that their attacker is firmly behind bars.
“Never accept a lift home from someone you do not know and if you have ordered a taxi ensure the vehicle you are getting into is licensed. Never get into an unlicensed vehicle.
“Dorset Police takes all sexual offences extremely seriously and we have a specialist team of officers who will investigate and ensure all victims are supported. I would ask that anyone who has been affected by this case to please contact police.”
