Cambridge sex offender jailed for attacking woman
26-year-old sentenced after pleading guilty to sexual assault
A man has been jailed for attacking a lone woman in Cambridge earlier this year.
Cameron McNally, 26, began following the victim on Devonshire Road at around 8.20pm on 31st January.
The woman initially realised she was being followed when she noticed his shadow behind her.
She turned onto Mill Road but continued to feel the presence of someone trailing her.
McNally, who had his hood up, overtook her and withdrew cash from the Sainsbury’s ATM.
While she walked along Emery Street, he grabbed her from behind, covered her mouth with his hand, and touched her.
After the assault, McNally ran off towards Mill Road as the victim screamed.
The victim called the police, and McNally was arrested two days later on 3rd February.
McNally, known to officers from a previous conviction in March this year for sexually assaulting a woman on a bus, pleaded guilty to the recent sexual assault.
In a hearing on Thursday, 7th May, at Cambridge Crown Court, he was sentenced to 20 months in jail.
He was ordered to sign the Sex Offenders Register for ten years and given an indefinite restraining order against the victim.
The impact statement from the victim revealed that McNally's assault had had a "lasting impact" on her life, causing paranoia about walking alone, affecting her social life, and leading to feelings of restriction during the evenings.
DC Will Kerslake, who investigated the case, said:
“McNally carried out what must have been a terrifying attack for the victim, and he is clearly a danger to women. I’d like to praise the victim for her bravery in coming forward and helping us with a prosecution. I hope this sentence gives her some sense of closure to this traumatic period of her life.”