'Animal' Dorset Police officer guilty of raping friend

A police officer has been found guilty of raping a friend who accused him of abusing her "like an animal".

PC Ravi Canhye, 47, carried out a series of sexual attacks on the woman and her friend over the course of a weekend in April 2022.

He was convicted by a jury at Winchester Crown Court of two rapes, three assaults by penetration, an attempted rape and two sexual assaults.

The Dorset Police officer was remanded in custody to be sentenced on Thursday.

PC Canhye had consensual sex with the first complainant before excessive drinking sent him "spinning out of control" over the course of a weekend, the court heard.

Prosecutor Sarah Jones KC said he slapped and bit the woman and then threatened to abuse her with his truncheon.

She said: "It came to a point where, she says, every time he was being too rough, when he was hurting her, that was exciting him and that made him worse at what he did.

"She considered he was behaving like an animal and that she considered him to be behaving like an animal seemed to drive him on more.

"It brought him a sense of power or gratification and either he had no interest in what effect it had on these women, particularly his friend, or he positively revelled in seeing her disgust, her discomfort."

The officer previously told the court he apologised when his friend showed him pictures of bruises on her breasts.

He claimed in court the rape accusation was made after he told her their consensual sex had been a mistake.

PC Canhye, from Poole, was unanimously found guilty of seven sex attacks on his friend.

The eighth offence, against the second woman, came when he sexually assaulted her while the first complainant went out to buy him more alcohol, the court heard.

Dorset Police said the officer had been suspended and would be subject to misconduct proceedings.

Deputy Chief Constable Rachel Farrell said: "I understand that these crimes will cause concern for our community and the fact that they were committed by a police officer is even more abhorrent.

"We are determined to root out officers who commit such offences as well as domestic abuse or show discriminatory, abusive or misogynistic behaviours."

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