A sexual predator has been jailed for 15 years after raping a woman while her friend’s son slept in the same room.
Luke Cartwright, 22, of Balmoral Drive in Dane Bank, was found guilty at Bolton Crown Court of seven charges against two women, including coercive control, assault and rape.
Police originally arrested Cartwright in February 2024 after his first victim came forward to report that he had been physically and mentally abusive, raped her in her sleep and constantly checked on her whereabouts.
In July 2024 Cartwright spent the night drinking at a friend’s house, becoming ‘heavily intoxicated’.
He found his second victim in an upstairs bedroom where she was asleep by her friend’s son, who she has been looking after, when according to Greater Manchester Police (GMP), Cartwright ‘forcefully assaulted her and raped her’.
She told friends what he had done with police arresting him at the scene and later charging him with two counts of rape and another of assault by penetration.
One of the survivors – who have lifelong anonymity – said in her victim impact statement that the anxiety he caused made her “physically throw up”, while her co-accuser told of her anger: “I am angry it happened. I am angry with myself that I feel I didn’t do enough to stop it.
“I know I said no and I pushed him off, however, I was still trying to be nice because I was scared.
“I sometimes blame myself for what happened to me, which also makes me feel angry.”
GMP’s lead domestic abuse officer Detective Superintendent Jen Tattershall added: “Controlling and coercive behaviour is a massive priority for GMP along with all types of violence against women and girls which includes rape.
“This case shows a really good investigation which highlights the complexities of that type of investigation and shows how much we take priority around our response to domestic abuse.
“Cartwright is a dangerous offender. This conviction and sentencing is a fantastic result and demonstrates GMP’s dedication towards DA.
“We’ve invested in it, created dedicated DA teams, and we are prioritising it to raise the solved outcome rate for victims of controlling and coercive behaviour.
“Controlling and coercive behaviour (CCB) can creep up on people, they think they are in a healthy relationship, and it slowly transforms into CCB, which makes it a challenge for victims to come forward and for policing, so GMP are trying to drive forward our overall response to domestic abuse and CCB.”
