Man jailed for 1980s rape offence

A man who evaded justice for nearly two decades has been sentenced to a minimum of 14 years in prison for a 2003 rape in Salford, a crime for which Andrew Malkinson was wrongly convicted and spent 17 years behind bars.

The judge, Mr Justice Bright, described the attacker, Paul Quinn, as “savage” and said the victim had suffered an act of “direct physical evil”.

Quinn, 52, will serve a maximum of 21 years in prison but will be eligible for parole after 14 years, three years short of the term served by Malkinson, whose conviction was quashed by the court of appeal.

Malkinson said he was “insulted and appalled” that Quinn had “got off so lightly” and hoped he would not be granted parole.

Outside the court, sources close to the investigation suggested the sentence could be referred to the attorney general’s office for being too lenient.

Quinn was found guilty in April after a fresh analysis found traces of his DNA on the victim’s clothing, and he must spend at least 14 years in prison before he is eligible to apply to the Parole Board for release.

The victim, now in her late 50s, was strangled unconscious and raped twice by Quinn, who followed her for about a mile before dragging her into a secluded woodland, an act that has stayed with her and will remain with her for life.

Quinn is being investigated as a potential suspect in other serious sexual assaults, including three rapes, and the case is now being examined by a judge-led inquiry and by the police watchdog, which is also investigating five former Greater Manchester police officers on suspicion of gross misconduct.

The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) is examining Greater Manchester police’s destruction of evidence in the Malkinson case, its failure to disclose the criminal histories of two key witnesses in the 2004 trial, and whether those witnesses were offered incentives to testify against the innocent man, a situation that has raised concerns about the handling of the investigation and the conviction of Malkinson, similar to cases of retribution against victims.

Sentencing Quinn, Mr Justice Bright said the attacker had abducted the woman from a safe place and “savagely” attacked her in “the most grave” way, and that she was “very lucky she did not die and luckier still that she did not incur significant brain damage”.

Quinn was convicted of twice raping a 12-year-old girl in 1990 and 1991, when he was 16, and has historical convictions for burglary, actual bodily harm, possessing an air gun, and arson with intent, and it emerged during the trial that he had repeatedly searched online for details about the Malkinson case.

The victim said in a statement that she lived with “permanent anxiety” and “in constant fear that someone is behind me, even in places that others wouldn’t consider a risk, like the supermarket”.

They hoped Quinn would not be granted parole and would serve longer than Malkinson.

The case has raised concerns about the handling of the investigation.