Army corporal who raped female soldier said condom made it ‘fine’
A British Army corporal told a colleague, ‘trust me, you’re fine, I wore a condom,’ after raping her.
Corporal Daniel Conway went out with the female soldier to celebrate her promotion and had arranged to sleep in his room.
She made it clear during the night that she wasn’t interested in him sexually before going to sleep only to wake up to Cpl Conway performing oral sex without consent, a court martial heard.
Drowsy and confused, the woman urged him to stop only to fall asleep again at Cpl Conway’s barracks in Harrogate, North Yorkshire.
She awoke again to a ‘sensation like when you’re having sex’ and leapt out of bed and fled to the bathroom.
When the woman returned, Cpl Conway, of Regiment One, Royal Logistics Corps, was gone.
Having told her over WhatsApp that he used a condom, Cpl Conway then denied they had sex at all after she accused him of raping her, the court was told.
Prosecutor Jane Carpenter told Bulford Military Court in Wiltshire: ‘Cpl Conway began groping her bottom and she told him to stop. He did stop. They then spooned before going to sleep.
‘She woke and felt him penetrate her with his tongue. She wasn’t sure where to go or what to do. She went back to sleep.’
After Cpl Conway left the room, the woman texted friends for support but no one was awake.
‘In the morning when she said goodbye to everyone, he said nothing and left immediately,’ Carpenter added.
DNA analysis of the victim’s underwear found saliva matching Cpl Conway’s.
The female soldier told the court: ‘I said “it wasn’t going to happen” and we had a conversation about that. I told him I’m not into one-night stands, and that I was interested in someone else.
‘He’s a lot younger than me too. He was groping my bottom. He was rubbing my bum and squeezing it. He was proper grabbing it – I was surprised.
‘I told him to stop, and we went to sleep.’
‘I woke up and he was behind me and his face was between my legs. I told him to stop and he did,’ she said.
‘I feel violated,’ she added, ‘the not knowing what he did is the worst part.’
On WhatsApp, the woman messaged Cpl Conway the day after the sexual assault: ‘I know you had sex with me before I woke up. Were you wearing anything? I need to know if I was protected.’
‘Trust me, you’re fine. I was wearing [a condom] I was steaming. I’m sorry, end of,’ he replied, only to then say when accused of rape: ‘We didn’t have sex, I can assure you.
‘We never had sex, I never entered you. I don’t know why I said that.’
Cpl Conway denied charges of rape and assault by penetration but was convicted of both offences.
He has since been dismissed from the armed forces and sentenced to seven years and six months behind bars.
Campaign group Action on Armed Violence (AOAV) said the rape is a ‘stark reminder of the ongoing challenges surrounding sexual assault within the military’.
‘It highlights the urgent need for comprehensive reforms to address this pervasive issue and ensure the safety and well-being of servicewomen,’ said AOAV executive director Dr Iain Overton.
‘It is crucial that immediate action is taken to protect servicewomen, hold perpetrators accountable,’ he added, ‘and create a culture of safety and respect within the armed forces.’
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