Rapist jailed after attacking man on night out in Warminster

A rapist has been jailed after attacking a man on a night out in Warminster.

Elvis Barney, 48, of no fixed address, was sentenced at court yesterday (09/06) to six years imprisonment with an extension of three years on licence after pleading guilty to two counts of rape.

The incident happened back in December 2022 – officers received a call from a man in a telephone kiosk who was incredibly distressed. When officers attended the scene, the man reported that he had been raped by a man following a night out in Warminster.

The victim had spoken briefly to Barney during the evening, but did not know him.

When the victim left to walk home in the early hours of the morning, he collapsed in the street and lost consciousness.

He was woken by Barney, who he asked to call for an ambulance. Instead, he dragged his victim into a flat and raped him twice.

Having gained consciousness, the victim managed to flee the address and ran to a nearby phone kiosk where he called police.

Barney was identified and arrested swiftly.

Det Con Simon Rogers praised the victim for bravely reporting his ordeal.

“I would like to thank the victim for the courage he has shown in reporting this, and his support with the investigation process,” he said.

“Although they briefly spoke in a bar earlier in the night, Barney was not known to his victim. Barney took advantage of the victim’s unconscious state and, despite him repeatedly asking for an ambulance, Barney refused to call for help and instead claimed to be medically trained. He then went on to rape his victim, who later managed to leave the address and call police.

“In interview, Barney initially denied leaving his flat all evening which was quickly disproved by CCTV in the town. He went on to change his account to say that he had been out in town but had never met the victim, but again we were able to prove this was not the case through CCTV enquiries. He later pleaded guilty to two counts of raping the victim.

“This was a premeditated attack where the suspect deliberately misled the victim when he needed medical attention. The victim put his trust in this stranger but sadly was taken into a flat and sexually assaulted.

“Offending of this nature will not be tolerated and I would encourage anybody who has been the victim of a sexual offence to report it to the police. Without the bravery of the victim in this case Barney would not have been convicted and would remain a risk to the public.”