Warning: This story contains graphic content which some readers might find distressing.
A woman who was raped by her then husband is urging other victims of sexual assault to report the attacks. The man who raped and sexually assaulted Penny, not her real name, in 2022 was sentenced to 13 years in prison when the case reached court in May 2025.
Penny, from Cornwall, said that despite being left "bruised and bleeding", she feared speaking out would ruin her partner's life: "That sounds ridiculous but I think this is how a lot of women may feel if they have been in long-term relationships."
Det Ch Insp Zoe Taylor, of Devon and Cornwall Police, said: "It takes a lot of courage to report crimes of this nature, not least because victims will be severely traumatised."
Penny and her husband have a daughter together and had been married for 12 years when he attacked her on two separate nights in August 2022.
"He had his forearm on my throat and I believe he wanted me in a state of semi-unconsciousness," she said. "I couldn't catch my breath with what he was doing, he was not stopping and I thought 'he is going to kill me'. I managed to catch a breath and make a noise and it woke my daughter up and she walked into the bedroom. I remember looking at myself in the mirror and realising I was covered in bruises, I was bleeding and thinking 'what has happened?'"
Penny said it was her daughter walking into the bedroom that made her call 101.
If you have been affected by any of the issues in this story, help and support is available at BBC Action Line.
The Office of National Statistics said 217,567 sexual offences were reported to police in England and Wales between March 2025 and March 2026. Of these, 6,678 were in the Devon and Cornwall Police area. The force said 138 perpetrators were convicted of sexual offences, including 55 for rape, between January and June 2026.
Taylor said 8.9% of cases reported to Devon and Cornwall Police ended in either a charge, summons, caution or a court conviction. "There is a lot of work still to do but that figure is heading in the right direction. Our outcome rate is currently 8.9% and at the beginning of 2025, that was 5.3%," she said.
Taylor said people could get the support they needed from police and agencies such as sexual assault referral centres and the Victim Care Unit.
Joss Leicester, from Devon Rape Crisis, said victims found the process of reporting attacks traumatic: "You have to go through all the forensic testing which can feel overwhelming." She said the group had received 414 referrals this year, of which 66 were reported to the police. "People don't always feel like they get the best response from the police, they often report but then drop out, and there is often a feeling they won't be believed and what has happened to them won't go anywhere," Leicester said.
Victim of Husband’s Rape Urges Others to Speak Out