The summer months have been busy for judges across Devon and Cornwall, who have dealt with a number of rapists and sex offenders.
The courts, including Truro, Plymouth and Exeter Crown Courts, have heard a litany of sickening cases of men grooming, abusing, coercing, threatening and assaulting women and children.
The cases, investigated by specialist detectives from Devon and Cornwall Police and brought to court by Crown Prosecution Service solicitors and barristers, have resulted in juries finding the offenders guilty of the crimes, or on occasion the offenders themselves admitted the charges.
Judges, who are obliged to abide by sentencing guidelines that ensure a consistent approach to sentences wherever they are in the country and recognise both aggravating and mitigating factors, have passed a mixture of custodial and non-custodial sentences, occasionally voicing their thoughts about the offender and their crimes.
Roberts, aged 25 of Breacon Hill, Bodmin, was found guilty at Truro Crown Court of the rape of a 14-year-old girl. He was sentenced to four years and two months in prison on Friday 19 June.
Roberts was also given a 15-year Sexual Harm Prevention Order and ordered to sign the National Sex Offender Register for life. A 10-year restraining order was also imposed.
The court heard that Roberts tried to kiss the girl during the incident in October 2021, and when she said no he grabbed her by the arm and raped her.
In a victim impact statement read out in court during a sentencing hearing, she said she has recurrent nightmares, flashbacks and suffers from anxiety to the point that she has been left fearful to go out in case she sees Roberts or his family.
The sentencing hearing heard how Roberts has previous convictions for violence against women and committed the rape while on bail for battery.
Korambayil was jailed for 14 years by Judge Simon Carr after being found guilty on three counts of rape.
Korambayil, aged 34, of Redhill in Surrey, attacked and raped the two victims in their own homes after meeting them on social media. He was previously convicted by a jury after denying three counts of rape at Truro Crown Court in November 2023.
Following the first trial, Korambayil appealed against his convictions and the Court of Appeal quashed them and ordered a retrial. Reporting restrictions were imposed until the conclusion of the retrial, but they were later lifted following the guilty verdicts, so the details could be made public on June 25 this year.
Korambayil was jailed for seven years in relation to each victim, to run consecutively. He must also sign the sex offenders’ register for life.
The victims of his crimes have been praised for their fortitude in remaining engaged throughout the investigation and judicial process.
One of the rape offences took place in North Devon in August 2020, and the other two relating to a second victim happened in Cornwall in March 2021.
Korambayil had worked in hospitals as a trainee colorectal and vascular surgeon between 2016 and 2021, the court heard.
One woman said in her victim impact statement, read out during sentencing, that the appeal and retrial had "forced me back into the darkest period of my life".
She added: "I feel emotionally hollowed by the relentlessly brutal nature of these proceedings and the knowledge that a crime committed in a matter of hours has now consumed more than five years of my life."
Both women, who do not know each other and live "miles apart" in different counties, gave evidence in court for a second time.
Prosecutor Bill Baker KC said Korambayil was a "sexual predator" who had "tricked" his way into their "confidence, homes and raped them".
Courts Sentence Rapists and Sex Offenders Across Devon and Cornwall