Michael Gold, 26 years old, pleads guilty to raping of 88-year-old woman
Gold was caught after his fingerprints matched the boxer short he left at crime scene
He was sentenced to imprisonment of 24 years
LONDON, England – A man was sentenced to face jail time for more than two decades after he brutally raped an 88-year-old female pensioner three times after climbing through her bedroom window in south London.
Michael Gold, 26 years old, was sentenced to imprisonment for 24 years on Thursday after pleading guilty for his horrific attacks on the 88-year-old woman. The man was caught after he left his boxer shorts on the woman’s floor.
“The actions of Gold that day are truly shocking. He brutally and repeatedly raped a vulnerable elderly lady who believed she was safe,” said Det Sgt Darren Nayler, of the Met’s Sexual Offences, Exploitation and Child Abuse Command.
“As a result of the horrific attack the victim suffers ongoing nightmares and requires constant care,” he added.
An article by Ramzy Alwakeel for Evening Standard published on October 29 disclosed that the victim awoke in the early hours of June 19 and was surprised to see Gold climbing through her bedroom window.
“Thinking he meant to rob her, she offered him her pension,” a police spokesman said. However, Gold said he was there for “her.”
Photo Credit: The Mirror
“He then brutally raped her three times, leaving her in tremendous pain and collapsed on the floor. She lay there for up to an hour before managing to dial 999 at about 4.45am,” the police spokesman said.
“Police and the London Ambulance Service attended and she was taken to Kings College Hospital in severe shock with heavy bruising across her body. Officers found a pair of boxer shorts on the floor of the bedroom and enquiries quickly identified Gold as a potential suspect,” the spokesman added.
An article written by Stephen Beech for The Mirror on October 30 narrated that Gold was arrested at his home in Bromley; the same day that his DNA was matched to the material left at the scene of the crime.
After investigations, his fingerprints matched one taken from the victim’s home. Gold admitted three counts of rape at Croydon Crown Court and will be on the Sex Offenders’ Register for life.