'West End Rapist' gets 14 years for five attacks

A rapist who preyed on women in the West End of London was jailed for 14 years yesterday.

A rapist who preyed on women in the West End of London was jailed for 14 years yesterday.

Benarsko Gaisey, 34, was found guilty last month of four rapes and an indecent assault on three women at his flat in Stoke Newington, north London, in 1997.

The Old Bailey was told that Gaisey had boasted of being a womaniser and of having had casual sex with 100 women - in addition to having two regular girlfriends. Judge John Rogers jailed Gaisey for seven years on each rape and 12 months for the indecent assault. Some of the sentences were concurrent.

Gaisey used to approach his victims after finishing work in the kitchens of West End restaurants and lured them to his flat for drinks.

Police took the unusual step of issuing Gaisey's photograph to warn women that he was "extremely dangerous".

The move followed the ordeal of a 17-year-old Italian who suffered serious injuries when she fell 45ft while trying to escape after being raped twice by Gaisey.

Officers feared he had attacked other women who had since left the country or had not reported the crimes to police. Gaisey came to Britain from Ghana as an asylum-seeker in 1995 but fled after the offences in the summer of 1997. He was extradited from Ghana last year. The court was told the publicity campaign to track down Gaisey resulted in two other women coming forward to complain about sexual offences committed by him.

A 29-year-old told the court she was lured into his flat after a night out in central London. She was raped twice and managed to escape when Gaisey fell asleep. A 22-year-old fled from the flat after she was forcibly kissed and groped by Gaisey.