Man, 26, jailed for sexual assault

A 26-year-old man who pinned a woman to the bed before injuring her friend who tried to intervene has been jailed for two years and eight months.

On October 8, 2022, Joe Clarke, aged 26, previously of Kettering, was invited to a woman’s house for a drink with her and some friends. 

However, as the night progressed, Clarke tried to instigate sex with one of the women. When she refused, he exposed himself, tried to pull down her trousers and repeatedly touched her inappropriately.

This culminated in him pinning her down and punching her. Throughout the attack, he kept telling the victim she “wanted it”.

The woman’s friend heard the commotion and tried to intervene, however Clarke attacked her as well - pushing and grabbing her.

Thankfully, neither of the women suffered any major physical injuries and Clarke left the address shortly after the two assaults.

The next day, he texted both women to apologise and “ask for forgiveness”.

However, they bravely contacted Northamptonshire Police and Clarke was arrested and subsequently charged with one count of sexual assault, one count of actual bodily harm and one count of common assault.

After pleading guilty to the offences at Northampton Crown Court on May 10, Clarke was sentenced to two years and eight months in prison.

Lead investigator Detective Constable Mark Wilson said: “I am really pleased that these women felt confident enough to report these offences to us and I hope this result provides with them with a sense of justice.

“Tackling violence against women and girls is a matter of priority for us and taking people like Joe Clarke off our streets contributes to this aim.

“We will continue working hard, not only to bring more people like him to justice, but to also ensure women and girls feel comfortable reporting such incidents to us.”

Help and support 

If you have been a victim of sexual abuse or assault, whether recent or non-recent, please come forward by calling 101 or online at www.northants.police.uk/RO. We will believe you.

If you have been a victim of rape or sexual abuse, but are not yet ready to speak to the police, please visit www.nhft.nhs.uk/serenity or call Serenity on 01604 601713.

Serenity provides free, confidential 24/7 support.

You can also visit www.voicenorthants.org  or call Voice on 0300 303 1965.

Voice is a support service for anyone living in Northamptonshire, regardless of when, where or how crime happened to you. Services are free, confidential and you don’t have to have reported anything to the police.