A man who raped a woman in a Catford alleyway after attacking her with a glass bottle has been jailed.

Michael Nwachukwu, 29, of Canadian Avenue, Catford, was sentenced to eight years at Woolwich Crown Court today for two counts of rape and two counts of actual bodily harm, having been found guilty in August following a five-day trial.

The court heard that Nwachukwu raped the victim, a woman in her 20s, at Winsdale Way, Catford, at around 10.15pm on October 15 2018.

On the day of the attack, the victim and her friend, who Nwachukwu had met a few days earlier, went to an alleyway to meet him.

On arrival, he was described as acting 'strangely', and suddenly attacked the friend with a glass bottle, striking her on the head.

She ran away from the scene and called the police.

In the meantime, Nwachukwu attacked the victim with the same glass bottle and punched her around the head and face. He then raped her.

Officers arrived at the scene and immediately detained Nwachukwu.

Both women were taken by the London Ambulance Service to a south London hospital.

Detective Constable Dean Young, of the South East Safeguarding Unit, said: “Nwachukwu is a predatory and dangerous man and I am glad he will now spend a considerable amount of time in jail.

“I would like to praise the women for their courage in both reporting this to police and supporting this prosecution. I can only hope that Nwachukwu’s conviction and sentencing brings some closure to both women.”