A convict who raped a woman at knifepoint whilst o

A convict who raped a woman at knifepoint whilst on the
run from jail has been jailed for eight years by an Old Bailey
judge.

But defiant Michael Silburn shouted at Judge Cole: ‘I’ll
see you at the appeal.

I’m innocent.

‘
The court heard Silburn, 29, was jailed for five years
in 1990 for possessing firearms.

He was taken to Kingston Hospital after a fight with prison
officers and simply walked out.

A month later on December 27 he met his victim, then 19, in
Safeways in Stamford Hill, n.

London.

He began chatting her up and told her she looked nice,
said prosecutor Miss Joanna Cutts.

The teenager told him she had a boyfriend but Silburn,
who was living in various addresses in the Hackney area, followed
her all the way to her mothers nearby home.

He asked her if she could have a drink and she allowed
him into the house for a Cherryade.

Suddenly he grabbed her in the kitchen and held a penknife
to her throat.

Silburn dragged her into the bedroom, ripped her clothes
off and raped her with the knife to her throat.

He smashed the glass he had used in a failed bid to avoid
leaving fingerprints before fleeing from the flat.

Unusually the victim was not called to give evidence and
instead her statement was read out, with the agreement of Silburn’s
barrister Mr Phillip Sutton.

The defence accepted that the teenager had been raped but
argued the DNA evidence which linked Silburn to the attack was
‘unreliable.

‘
Silburn told the court he had been fitted up by the
police because an officer in the case took a dislike to him
when he dealt with him before.

He claimed the police even went as far as to plant the
pieces of glass in the flat which had his fingerprints on.

But the jury rejected the defence story and after three
hours deliberation found Silburn guilty.

The case took longer than normal to come to be heard
because Silburn was first tried with raping a former girlfriend,
but was cleared by the jury.

Passing sentence the judge gave Silburn credit for not forcing
the girl to go through the ordeal of giving evidence.

But he added: ‘You have been convicted of this offence of rape,
in my view very properly.

‘You trooped into that young lady’s house and decided to
rape her.

You threatened her and you used a knife.

‘
After his outburst Silburn glared at the judge for several
moments before he was led to the cells.

ENDS