A man who crept into a woman’s bedroom and sexually assaulted her has been jailed. Terrence Murtha, 57, was given permission to sleep on the sofa of the house in North Devon but instead snuck upstairs and assaulted the 22-year-old woman.
Murtha was found guilty of three assaults at trial in November and was sentenced on Friday, December 13. He was jailed for five years and told to register as a sex offender for life.
The victim said the sex attack, which happened in 2021, had changed her life. She said in a statement: “The nightmares I’ve had were so intense and were the worst I had ever experienced.
“It felt like I was reliving this disgusting situation I was forced into over and over again. I was scared and disgusted to even be in my own home and couldn’t stay there. I really struggled with day to day life. I was unable to go to work and this had a huge financial impact.”
The trial was told the woman woke up to find Murtha with his hands groping her body. He was convicted of two offences of sexual assault by touching and one of assault by penetration. The judge also imposed a restraining order for 10 years.