A Wandsworth man coerced four into having sex with him by pretending to be a woman has been found guilty.

Duarte Xavier, 33, posed as a woman called 'Ana' on various online platforms. He exchanged number with these men and sent them explicit photos and videos of the woman he claimed to be. In some cases, he put on a feminine voice to speak to the victims over the phone.

The court heard that Xavier was a liar and fantasist who carried out his crimes over several years. He would use online dating websites to masquerade as ‘Ana’, entering conversations and sending provocative pictures to heterosexual men, who were fooled by his online persona into meeting for sex.

Xavier used Craigslist, Lovoo and Tinder to find men looking for 'no strings attached' fun. After persuading them to meet him, he encouraged the men to meet him blindfolded either at his home in Wandsworth or nearby King George's Park, where he engaged in sexual acts with them.

On the first reported incident on 17 February 2016, a 45-year-old victim had been communicating with ‘Ana’ through a dating app and arranged to meet at ‘Ana’s’ flat.

Rules had been set prior to the victim’s arrival so that both apparently knew what would happen; ‘Ana’ told the victim that he would not see her throughout their encounter.

Upon arrival at an address in Wandsworth, the victim followed the instructions and found a blindfold in the bedroom.

He heard ‘Ana’ call his name and put the blindfold on. The pair began having sex when the victim realized something was wrong and removed the blindfold, when he saw Xavier.

The victim was enraged and immediately left the address. Xavier sent a message to the victim afterwards saying, ‘I got a mental health problem, sorry’. The victim ordered Xavier to delete all record of their communication, to which he replied that he already had.

The second victim, a 29-year-old man, agreed to meet at Xavier's flat in Hardwick Square after talking on WhatsApp for a day. 

The victim was led into a room where Xavier started performing oral sex. He took the blindfold off and saw Xavier, immediately leaving in disgust. 

The victim reported the incident to police and Xavier was arrested on October 16, 2017 but was released under investigation. 

The fourth victim was identified by police after reviewing phone records from seized mobiles. The 29-year-old had been too embarrassed to come forward or tell anyone. 

Xavier continued to trick men into having sex with him. He was arrested a third time after a 26-year-old man reported him to police. He was released on bail. 

The four incidents took place between February 2016 and April 2018.

Xavier, who now lives in Bournemouth, denied six months of causing a person to engage in sexual activity without consent. However, he was convicted of all six counts by a jury at Kingston Crown Court on Friday, October 5.

Kunal Davé, from the CPS, said: “Duarte Xavier fooled these victims into intimacy by pretending to be a woman. None of these men consented to having sex with Xavier, a male. Xavier drew them in on false pretences, and in turn carried out a grave deception on each occasion.

“I hope today’s conviction not only makes clear just how important consent is, but also gives these victims some measure of comfort, and sends a message to other victims that they are not alone.”

Xavier will be sentenced at Kingston Crown Court on November 9.