A rapist who identifies as a woman has been sent to a men’s prison after being convicted of assaulting a friend.
Lexi-Rose Crawford, 24, was sentenced to nine years for one count of rape and one of assault by penetration relating to an incident in April 2019.
Crawford committed the offences shortly after being released from a four-year prison sentence for two counts of sexual activity with a child, which occurred in 2017.
On Wednesday, Bristol Crown Court heard that Crawford had contacted the victim on Facebook and gone to her home to play video games.
It is believed Crawford began identifying as a woman before the 2019 rape after she had been released for the earlier sex offences on a different victim.
Crawford has denied the offences and claims she “blacked out” during the incident, but was convicted by a unanimous jury following a trial.
Judge Michael Longman sentenced Crawford to a nine-year prison sentence for the rape, as well as six years and six months for the assault by penetration, which will run concurrently.
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Crawford is believed to have been sent to a male prison following her sentence, in line with a government policy that was enforced in February.
The guidance says that transgender women offenders will not be housed in women’s prisons if they have male genitalia or have committed sexual offences.
The judge said Crawford’s convictions were “particularly serious” given her history of offending, and the rape having occurred in the victim’s home.
“Whether you remember raping them or not, it is clear that you ignored their wishes and protests and carried on regardless against their will,” the judge said during sentencing.
Judge Longman then said there should be a restraining order, preventing Crawford from contacting the victim, and the defendant must sign the Sex Offenders Register indefinitely.
Prosecutor Gregory Gordon told the court that Crawford raped the victim with “her penis” after contacting her on Facebook to go to her address.
“She was told repeatedly to stop but she wouldn’t listen,” he said.
In a victim personal statement, the woman recalled suffering from “flashbacks and nightmares” and had been forced to move house since the attack happened in her own home.
“My trust in males was low prior to this incident,” her statement said. “After the incident, my trust in males diminished even more.
“My trust in people generally has been affected. Lexi was supposed to be my friend.”
The victim said she had suffered from anxiety and had experienced suicidal thoughts since the attack.
Defence lawyer Charley Pattison said Crawford had been diagnosed with emotionally unstable personality disorder, autism and gender dysphoria.
“Lexi-Rose says she feels she blacked out during these events, she doesn’t have a recollection of it,” Ms Pattison said.
“She gets very upset thinking about it. She was only 20 at the time. This happened on licence but since 2019 she has not been in any trouble. She is extremely sad and upset.”
Ms Pattison said the case had taken four years to come to a conclusion, with Crawford experiencing suicidal thoughts and self-harming as a coping mechanism.
Crawford was informed she will serve two-thirds of her sentence before being released on licence.
