Serial burglar climbed in through window to rape a sleeping woman

Mark Winterburn, 33, of Kirklands Close, Yeadon, was convicted by a jury at Bradford Crown Court of the ‘dreadful incident’.

Today, the trial judge, Recorder Richard Woolfall, sentenced him to 14 years in jail with a five-year extended licence period.

He will serve at least two thirds of the custodial term before he can even be considered for release by the Parole Board.

Winterburn, a drug and alcohol abuser, was on licence at the time and had preyed on vulnerable victims in the past, the judge said.

He had experience of entering properties as a burglar and had got into the woman’s home uninvited through a window at night.

She was very intoxicated after previously not drinking for some considerable time and had woken to find Winterburn raping her. She had pushed him off and spoke in her victim personal statement of feeling vulnerable, dirty and shaken.

She was constantly on edge afterwards and had felt unsafe even though she knew Winterburn was in HMP Leeds on remand.

She had depression and anxiety and used taxis instead of public transport because she was scared.

Prosecutor Brian Russell said Winterburn had previous convictions for house burglary.

He was on licence at the time after he was jailed following an offence in which he burgled an elderly lady after dozing off in her bed next to her. He had forced his way into her home while under the influence of drugs and alcohol before making off with some cash.

He then targeted another elderly victim by throwing a rock through her window and burgling the address.

Winterburn’s barrister David Hall said that the rape offence was ‘ad hoc, drunken and chaotic.’ Winterburn had led a lonely and dissolute life with a long-standing drug addiction since suffering a tragic family bereavement.

He behaved well in custody when away from drink and drugs and had engaged with mental health services while in prison.

Recorder Woolfall said Winterburn got into the woman’s address uninvited through the window when she was intoxicated and asleep.

She was considerably distressed but now more positive after the jury’s guilty verdict, knowing that she was now safe. When sober there was a different side to Winterburn, but when in drink he ‘behaved as he wished.’ He had experience of entering properties uninvited as a burglar and although he had no previous convictions for sexual offences, he had preyed on vulnerable victims before. This was ‘a dreadful incident,’ the judge said.

Winterburn’s probation officer had concluded that he posed a high risk to vulnerable women. He must sign on the sex offender register for the rest of his life.