Woman who had drunken sex session with three men is jailed for crying rape

Sabrina Johnson was late for work after a late night drinking binge and told her employer she had been attacked.

A pregnant woman who took part in an alcohol-fuelled sex session with three men has been jailed for a year after lying to police that she had been raped.

Sabrina Johnson, 25, performed sex acts on the three strangers she had met while walking home from a night out, Chelmsford Crown Court in Essex heard.

The following morning when she woke up, hung over and late for work, she told her boss that she had been dragged into a park by two strangers and forced to perform oral sex on them.

Horrified workmates urged Johnson to report the attack to police, and detectives spent 311 hours investigating the alleged crime, at a cost of some £6,753.



The investigation continued until one of the men involved came forward with a voice recording that he had made on his mobile phone of Johnson consenting to the sex game.

Judge Anthony Goldstaub QC jailed the three-months pregnant supermarket worker for 12 months after she pleaded guilty to a perverting the course of justice.

He said her lies had caused fear: 'This was an allegation of a terrifying nature. There was heightened public fear of rapists, an atmosphere of fear that was created wholly unnecessarily.'

He added that it was only thanks to the mobile phone voice recording that the men were cleared.



He added: 'You had sexual relations with them and played some kind of sex game. One of the males, a prudent gentleman, recorded your consent on his mobile phone, including your image. But for his doing so he would have been very likely in deep trouble.'

The court heard that one of the men involved, none of whom have been named, contacted police when he saw an e-fit which resembled him.

Judge Goldstaub said: 'The men had to make statements and supply their DNA to police officers, and it must have been a frightening experience, particularly for the man you identified.

'All he could say was that you had consented, but defendants often say so in rape cases, and juries are often invited not to believe them.

'The effects on the victim wrongly accused can be appalling, and might well have been in this case.'

The court heard Johnson had downed five gin and tonics, a glass of wine and Sambuca shots on a night out in her home town of Chelmsford on June 4 this year

She was walking home when she met three men in the street and they invited her for a drink in a nearby flat. The brunette played a drinking game with the men before performing oral sex on all three of them.

The court heard that the trainee assistant supermarket manager woke up the following morning with a hangover and was due to start work at the Co-op supermarket at 6am.

She did not get into work until 12.45pm and told her boss it was because she had been attacked.

Prosecuting, Samantha Lawther told the court that Johnson had already received a warning from work for being late and her boss asked if she had a crime reference number. She later called the police and repeated her lies.

She told police that two men had dragged her from a cycle path into a wooded nature reserve area in Central Park, Chelmsford, and forced her to perform oral sex on them. She underwent a medical examination and specially trained officers interviewed her on video.

Johnson took officers to the park and showed them where the 'rapists' had attacked her. She claimed a group of women had walked past on a nearby path and scared off the attackers.

Detectives cordoned off part of the park, put up yellow boards appealing for witnesses and publicised the bogus attack in a bid to bring witnesses forward.

In the appeals Johnson was described as a 'defenceless young woman' and said to be 'badly traumatised by her ordeal'.

A team of 21 officers worked on the investigation and extra detectives and police officers were were drafted in to patrol the area in order to allay community fears.

CCTV cameras from the town were scoured for the bogus rapists. Johnson gave police detailed descriptions of the men including their clothes and helped officers create e-fits which resembled two of the innocent men.



One of the men saw the e-fit and contacted police. All three men were questioned and had DNA swabs taken but they were never charged because one of them had a damning recording on his phone of Johnson consenting to the sex game.

Johnson confessed when she was confronted with her lies, the court heard.



She told officers: 'Things just started getting bigger and bigger and I could not stop it.

'I realise what I have done. It's appalling, I'm ashamed of myself. I'm really sorry.'

Her solicitor, Peter Barlex, told the court in mitigation that Johnson only had a vague memory of what had happened because she had been drinking.

He added that she had been badly affected by a diet which restricted her to 410 calories a day and prohibits solid food.

Mr Barlex said Johnson was very sorry for lying and apologised to police and all victims of rape.

He told the court that the defendant had only contacted police at the urging of her ex-partner and workmates. He said 'It was a situation that got out of hand and she could not get out of it.'

Speaking outside court Detective Chief Inspector Mark Wheeler from Essex Police said he hoped Johnson's lies would not stop genuine victims coming forward.

He added: 'Stranger rape is a very rare offence in this county. Essex Police will do everything possible to support the victims and bring the offender to justice.

'We encourage victims to contact the police and they will be interviewed by specially trained officers and dealt with sensitively.'