Man tries to rape kickboxer, gets knocked out cold, Latest World News - The New Paper
World

Man tries to rape kickboxer, gets knocked out cold

This article is more than 12 months old

A woman from Gloucester put her kickboxing training to good use by knocking out a sexual predator who attacked her.

The 25-year-old was on her way home at around 2am when she was waylaid by Mark Willis.

The 39-year-old punched his surprised victim several times in the face before jumping on top of her in a garden, saying: "Be quiet and do as I tell you and you won’t get hurt."

However, the woman, who cannot be named, fought back using the skills she had picked up from two years of kickboxing.

Speaking to the Gloucester Crown Court, she said: "I swore at him. He hit me again in the face. He was grabbing at my clothing."

KO

While an enraged Willis landed more blows on the woman after she attempted an arm lock, she managed to gain the upper hand by choking the pervert with her legs – ​ a move that caused him to lose consciousness.

"I was stunned for a moment. Again I could feel him grabbing me and pulling at my clothes," she recalled.

"My legs were free so I lifted my left leg up on to his shoulder and around the back of his neck. I crossed my right leg over and squeezed together as hard as I could. 

"He seemed to struggle for air – which was the point. His head was locked down. He lifted his right hand and pounded as hard as he could on the side of my face.

"I closed my eyes and held it for as long as I could hoping he would pass out in a few seconds. Then I felt his body go limp. I flipped him off, rolled over and crawled through the bushes to the door of the house."

While Willis managed to return to his senses quick enough to escape, the long arm of the law caught up with him as a jury found him guilty of sexual assault on Tuesday (May 19).

Aside from witnessing her attacker be brought to justice in court, the woman was also awarded £500 ($1,039) by the judge as a "tiny token of the court's appreciation" for her courage.

Dubai case

Over in Dubai, an ongoing court case revealed that a similar incident took place when a woman from Kyrgyzstan who learnt kickboxing as a student fended off a would-be rapist that she had met at a night club with her fight skills.

The 32-year-old was nearly raped after she had rejected the sexual advances of the man, but she responded with a flurry of kicks and punches to beat her attacker into submission.

Sources: Mail Online, UNILAD, The National

sexual assaultCOURT & CRIMEGloucesterDubaiUncategorisedMartial Arts