Statistician’s ‘rape’ attack on student

A former Oxford University Phd student raped a young woman in his flat and texted her a year later to apologise, a court heard.

Statistician Sherman Ip (corr), 25, allegedly forced the victim down on to his bed and pulled off her clothes before launching the attack.

The victim fled in tears but decided not to go to police after sending him a message to tell him what he did was wrong.

She was driven to make her allegations in October 2014 after receiving a text from IP saying: ‘I am really sorry for raping you’, jurors were told.

Ip has a masters degree in Physics from University College London and in 2015 moved to Oxford University for the first year of his Phd as part of the Oxford Warwick Statistics Programme. He is now at Warwick.

Southwark Crown Court heard the victim was also a student at the time and had known Ip for several years.

‘The rape took place on a day she cannot put a date on – for reasons that will become clear – but it may well have been on 14 May 2013.

‘She went to visit him at his home address – a flat, student accommodation, at Euston Square – to talk to him.

‘But as they talked it was clear that what he wanted was to have sex.

‘They were sitting on the sofa together and as they talked he obviously wasn’t listening to her because he kept trying to grope her and remove her clothes.

‘She stopped him because she wanted to talk and moved over to sit on the bed to put some distance between them.

‘That was unwise because he came over and forced her down onto the bed and started trying to remove her lower clothing.

‘He was pulling at her belt on her jeans.

‘She was telling him to stop but he continued, and after a while managed to undo her belt and pulled off her knickers and jeans together.’

Ip then took off his own clothes and raped her, the court heard.

Mr Povall said: ‘She started crying during the sex and he obviously noticed that because he asked her if she was alright – but continued in any event.

‘She felt frozen as it was happening and she explained she didn’t resist to stop him.

‘The sex ended and she remained there for a short time, then they both left.

‘She later sent him a message to point out to him that what he did was wrong and not what she wanted.

‘She didn’t go to the police and carried on with her studies.’

The alleged victim told her boyfriend in September 2013 but decided not to make a formal complaint.

Mr Povall said: ‘What drove her to go to the police was a message she received from him in October 2014.’

The text read: ‘I am so sorry for emotionally abusing you and manipulating you to do things you didn’t want to do. I am really sorry for raping you. I am really sorry for hurting you. It’s all my fault.’

Ip, who has never been arrested before, made no comment in police interview.

Mr Povall said: ‘After a very long delay he was charged in very late 2015 with a single charge of rape – that explains why we are dealing with a 2013 case in 2017.’

The prosecutor told jurors both the alleged victim and Ip are ‘bright and capable young people.’

Ip, of Burcot Gardens, Maidenhead, Berkshire, denies rape.

The trial continues.