A Croydon man has been jailed for raping and sexually assaulting teenagers

A 26-year-old man has been sentenced to 11 years in prison after raping and sexually assaulting two teenagers.

Nathan Catherall, from Croydon, met his 18- and 19-year-old victims through a dating app.

The offenses took place in 2020 and 2021 in Bristol, police said.

Catherall was also given indefinite notice requirements, meaning he will have to regularly report to police stations after his release.

One of the victims – who cannot be named for legal reasons – told Bristol Crown she was “so scared” during the ordeal as Catherall was sentenced on Thursday.

“Sometimes I feel numb thinking about what happened,” she added.

“I was able to push my feelings away so much that I didn’t have to deal with the pain.

“I like to think of myself as a strong woman, but at that moment I lost those traits and I lost myself.”

She added: ‘I hope to learn to forgive myself for being so hard on myself after you raped me and hopefully I can treat my body better by healing from it than I did with it.

“I don’t want to cry and I don’t want to hate myself either.

“I want to love my body and I want to love myself.”

Kate Brunner KC, prosecuting, said Catherall had a “worryingly entitled attitude” and an “absolute lack of understanding” of what he had done.

She also praised the victims for their “enormous strength and courage”.

Investigating officer Ellen Rye said: “No always means no and it can be demonstrated in different ways.

“It doesn’t have to be verbal and no matter how a person communicates it, it is valid and must be respected by the other party.

“This was not respected by Nathan Catherall who chose to ignore every victim’s right to say no – for his own satisfaction.”