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A man from Sefton has been jailed after being found guilty of committing sexual offences against a woman.
Following a trial last month, Bernard Sullivan, 51 years, was found guilty of two counts of assault by penetration, strangulation and three counts of rape at Liverpool Crown Court.
Yesterday (Monday 27 October), Sullivan, no fixed address but from Waterloo, was sentenced to 19 years in prison. He was also put on the Sexual Offenders Register for life and a restraining order is in place to not contact the victim indefinitely.
In a victim impact statement, the survivor detailed:
“Sullivan stripped away the strong, confident person I used to be. I struggled to go out alone suffered nightmares. I was constantly nervous and anxious and frightened in my own community.
“The effects of that continue to impact me, and I am still healing.
“Despite everything, I have worked hard to rebuild my life. His actions changed my life, affected my mental health, damaged my confidence, and altered how I live day-to-day. I believe women will be safer with him no longer in the community.”
Detective Constable Yvonne Worthington, who led the investigation, said:
“Throughout the investigation Sullivan showed no remorse for the abuse he carried out and denied the offences put to him. Thankfully the jury saw though his lies and found him guilty.
“We are committed to protecting victim-survivors, and anyone who reports an incident to us will be safeguarded and supported throughout the investigation by specially trained officers and Sexual Violence Advocates who will provide all the relevant support.
“Anyone that has been a victim of a sexual offence, is concerned for the safety of someone they know or suspects someone to be engaging in this criminal activity, should come forward and speak to us.
“We have a team of dedicated staff who will expertly and compassionately deal with your reports, and we will do everything we can to bring offenders to justice.”