A man who lured two teenage girls to his garage before raping them in separate attacks has been jailed.
Gregg Smith (22/02/1988) of Sale, Manchester was sentenced on Friday 4 September 2015 to 16 years in prison.
He had previously been found guilty of four counts of rape, four counts of sexual assault and two counts of failure to comply with notice to make a disclosure.
On the evening of 17 February 2014, Smith picked up two 14-year-old girls in the Longsight area in his car.
He drove them around for a while and gave them alcohol and cigarettes. When one of the girls told him she was 15 he replied, “Age is just a number.”
He drove to an isolated location where he told one of the girls she had to get out of the car to smoke a cigarette. Once outside the car, he raped and sexually assaulted the girl.
He then drove them both to his garage on Glebe Road, Urmston, and took the same girl he had earlier attacked inside and again raped her.
The second girl interrupted the attack and tried to get Smith off her friend which allowed the victim to gather her things.
In the early hours of Friday 18 July 2014, Smith began chatting with a 16-year-old girl, as she walked along Stretford Road, Urmston, and asked if she wanted to go with him to ‘smoke weed’.
She thought he was part of a bigger group of friends she had been with earlier and agreed to go with him.
He led her to his car repair garage and into the back of a van inside. Having asked her age, he stated that he usually goes for younger girls.
He then climbed into the van after her and, once inside, raped her. Smith continued his attack despite repeated pleas from the victim to stop, to which he replied: “I will stop when I’ve finished.”
He even told her that he had “raped 13-year-olds before” during the attack and asked her if she wanted to watch a video of it.
Some two hours later she managed to leave and police were subsequently called.
Following a media appeal to locate Smith, a member of the public spotted him sitting on a wall outside a shop in Sale and he was subsequently arrested.
During the investigation into the rape in February 2014, Smith was arrested and claimed to have had consensual sex with the girl, telling police he believed her to be 16.
An iPhone and tablet seized, both of which were either password or passcode protected.
Suspecting that one or both of these devices may have contained video evidence of the assaults, numerous efforts were made to access and analyse them. Smith refused to cooperate or provide the codes throughout.
Detective Inspector Debbie Oakes, said: “Smith is a repugnant and dangerous individual who has subjected two young girls to appalling sex attacks.
“He has lured them to his garage before forcing himself on them. It is clear that Smith was well aware of the age and vulnerability of his victims but even with his knowledge of how young they were, he knowingly carried out these horrendous crimes.
“During his heinous crimes, Smith also made distressing and worrying boasts about committing similar offences.
“If anyone has been affected by this investigation, or have been a victim of rape or sexual assault, then I would urge them to come forward.
“Greater Manchester Police is absolutely committed to bringing to justice those who commit such appalling sexual crimes and ensuring anyone who has been attacked gets the support they need. Please don’t suffer in silence. You will be believed and we will take any reports seriously and investigate thoroughly.
“We have specially trained officers who can offer the right support and help you come to terms with what you have been through, and together we can ensure these sorts of dangerous criminals are brought to justice and taken off the streets so that no-one else can be harmed.”
– Project Phoenix is a multi-agency response to CSE across the whole of Greater Manchester. The project brings together police, local authorities, NHS and third sector organisations, using their collective expertise to safeguard vulnerable young people at risk of exploitation and target those who would try to exploit them.
– Please visit www.itsnotokay.co.uk for information for children, young people, parents, carers and professionals on how to spot the signs of child sex exploitation and what to do about it.
– – If you or someone you know has been raped or sexually assaulted, we encourage you not to suffer in silence and report it to the police or a support agency so you can get the help and support available.
– – You can call Greater Manchester Police on 101, or alternatively people can refer themselves to St Mary’s Sexual Assault Referral Centre on 0161 276 6515.
– St Mary’s Sexual Assault Referral Centre in Manchester provides a comprehensive and coordinated forensic, counselling and medical aftercare service to anyone in Greater Manchester who has experienced rape or sexual assault. Services are available on a 24-hour basis and people can access them either as a self-referral or via Greater Manchester Police.
– Manchester Rape Crisis is a confidential support service run by women for women and girls who have been raped or sexually abused. Confidential helpline: 0161 273 4500. Black and Minority Ethnic helpline: 0161 273 4514.
– Survivors Manchester offers support and counselling for adult male survivors of sexual abuse and rape, regardless of when the event happened.
– Contact 07919 246 267.
