A man who raped an elderly woman in a 91-minute ordeal has been sentenced to three life sentences.

Anthony James Roberts, 41 of Holmbury Court, had admitted to raping the 81-year-old woman in a vicious attack in Balham on Friday, March 10.

He was sentenced at Kingston Crown Court today (Friday, April 28) to three life sentences to be served concurrently for kidnap, and two counts of rape.

He must serve a minimum of eight years before he is considered for parole.

On Friday, February 10, Roberts followed his victim off the bus she had been sitting next to him on at around 8.30pm.

He approached her from behind, said he had a knife and would kill her if she made any noise. He then took her to a secluded area and subjected her to a “vicious” ordeal that lasted more than an hour and a half.

He took most of her clothing before letting her go. The victim went home and told her family what happened and she later required hospital treatment for injuries sustained during the attack.

Detectives from the Sexual Offences Exploitation and Child Abuse Command arrested Roberts and charged him on Sunday, February 12.

Detective Inspector Melissa Laremore, from SOECA, said: "Roberts is a very dangerous offender who subjected the elderly victim to a vicious rape. Women and the wider public are safer now that he is facing life imprisonment. 

“I would like to pay tribute to the victim who has been extremely brave in assisting officers and providing descriptions of her attacker and the ordeal she went through, which helped us identify Roberts within days of the attack.

“The trauma will undoubtedly stay with her, but I hope that she takes some comfort now that her attacker is off the streets.

“Attacks of this horrific nature are extremely rare but when they do happen, we are committed to catching the perpetrator and bringing them to justice.”

Roberts was also sentenced to 12 months’ imprisonment for separate offences relating to indecent videos of women filmed at St George’s Hospital, Tooting, and in an Oxfam, on or before 16 January.

The videos were discovered after his mobile telephone was seized following his arrest for a public order offence.

London Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) reviewing lawyer Andrew Hudson said: “Anthony Roberts is a dangerous sexual predator.

“He saw an elderly and vulnerable woman on a bus and decided there and then that he was going to rape her. He then stalked her before subjecting her to an extremely disturbing attack lasting over 90 minutes.

“The victim’s bravery helped the police and CPS to bring a strong case against Roberts.

“Today’s sentence also takes into account the fact that he was convicted of a rape in 2003 and a finding by the sentencing judge that he poses a danger to the public.”