Hainault teenager who raped and tormented schoolgirl loses appeal against conviction

Shane Bradley Smith, now 20, of Robinia Close, Hainault, was himself a teenager when he preyed on the younger girl, London’s Appeal Court heard.

He was jailed indefinitely for public protection at Snaresbrook Crown Court in January 2010 after he was convicted of eight rapes.

That sentence is almost identical to a life term and means Smith will not be freed until the Parole Board is convinced the danger he poses to society has passed.

As well as subjecting his victim to multiple rapes, Smith beat her and violated her at knifepoint during one of his sick attacks.

Other incidents included tying the victim down in a garden shed and raping and beating her while she was bound hand and foot to a bed.

He was also captured on CCTV dragging the teenager along by her hair in the street.

Smith denied using force against the girl, but was convicted by the jury.

His case reached the Appeal Court as he challenged the safety of his convictions today.

He claimed his trial was unfair because he was denied the services of a “registered intermediary” who could have assisted him, given his learning difficulties.

But Judge John Bevan, sitting with Lord Justice Richards and Mrs Justice Dobbs, said there was no evidence that Smith had been “disadvantaged”.

“We are entirely satisfied that the trial was conducted properly and fairly, and the grounds of appeal are without merit,” he concluded.