A 'CONTROLLING and arrogant' man has been jailed for eight years for twice brutally raping a woman to punish and humiliate her.

Computer expert Steven Hoyle also used a device to remotely wipe incriminating text messages off his phone when it was in the hands of the police in a bid to evade justice, Bradford Crown Court heard.

Among the texts Hoyle, 45, sent to his victim afterwards were: "I did take what was mine."

Police had managed to make the copy of data from Hoyle's phone but were powerless to prevent the originals being removed, the court was told.

Hoyle, who lived at different addresses in Bradford after moving to the city from a caravan in the Liverpool area, bragged to the woman that he had also raped another woman.

After his relationship with the Bradford woman ended, he went on to send 1,344 text messages to an underage girl, some of them inciting her to have sex with her boyfriend.

Hoyle was convicted by a jury on Friday of two offences of anal rape, a count of inciting an underage girl to have sexual activity and perverting the course of justice by erasing data from his phone while he was on bail.

Prosecutor Stephen Wood said Hoyle used rape to punish and humiliate the woman.

Sentencing him yesterday Judge Jonathan Durham Hall QC said Hoyle became "an absolute nightmare" for her.

Hoyle, who ran a successful business from home unlocking sophisticated electronic equipment, was a gifted and intelligent man with bizarre personality traits, the judge said.

But he told him: "You appear to have used that method of rape as a purely punitive, degrading and humiliating act against this woman because she had irritated or slighted you."

During the trial, the woman told how Hoyle held her by the hair with her face in the pillow when he twice raped her, over a period of several months.

"You have a certain way of viewing the world and your importance and power in it," Judge Durham Hall said.

"You are controlling, arrogant and demanding."

Hoyle brutally raped the woman because she had danced with another man and talked to someone at the bar.

"Your behaviour was that of a man punishing a woman for having the temerity to do what you disliked," the judge said.

"You were using yourself as a weapon to inflict pain, humiliation and punishment."

Hoyle had shown no remorse and bitterly contested the allegations in court, labelling the victims and their friends liars.

Judge Durham Hall was persuaded by Hoyle's barrister, Gillian Batts, not to sentence him to an extended licence period as a dangerous offender.

Miss Batts said Hoyle had no relevant previous convictions and had not tried to contact either of his victims while on bail for many months.

He had addressed his alcohol problem and did not use violence over and above what was needed to rape the woman.

The judge made a Sexual Harm Prevention Order and ordered Hoyle to sign on the sex offenders' register, both without limit of time.

After the case, PC Janine Earlie, of the Bradford District Safeguarding Unit, said: "We would like to thank the victims for their bravery in reporting Hoyle's crimes.

"We hope this outcome will give them some closure and allow them to move forward with their lives.

"We also hope it will encourage others to report sexual abuse to our specially trained officers, who will investigate every report with the aim of bringing perpetrators to justice."

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