Rapist Ewan Blair, 21, of Brownlow Hill in Liverpool city centre, was sentenced to eight years in jail, extended to ten years as a dangerous offender, at Liverpool Crown Court on Wednesday, 5 February.
The judge imposed a lifetime Sexual Offender Notification requirement and established a permanent restraining order.
Ewan Blair, originally from Belfast, Northern Ireland, was convicted by a jury at Liverpool Crown Court last month. He was found guilty of seven offences: three charges of rape, two instances of sexual assault, assault by penetration, and oral rape.
The court was informed that Ewan Blair sexually attacked two women in their twenties within days of one another after establishing a friendship with them in Liverpool city centre in September 2023. Both individuals are receiving assistance from professionally trained officers.
Detective Sergeant Bob Sandham stated, “Ewan Blair’s predatory conduct towards both women is reprehensible, and he subsequently subjected them to the distress of recounting their experiences during the trial.”
“This has been an extremely lengthy and complex investigation. And while no sentence will repair the damage Ewan Blair inflicted on his victims’ I hope this conviction has secured some justice for them.
“I would like to praise the dignity the victims have shown throughout the investigation. Today’s results shows that violence against women and girls will simply not be tolerated and we will work tirelessly to bring perpetrators to justice.”
Detective Sergeant Sandham added, “We are committed to protecting victims of sexual offences, and anyone who reports an incident to us will be safeguarded and supported throughout the investigation by Specially Trained Officers and Sexual Violence Advocates who will provide all the relevant support.
“Anyone that has been a victim of a sexual offence, is concerned for the safety of someone they know or suspects someone to be engaging in this criminal activity, should come forward and speak to us.
“We have a team of dedicated staff who will expertly and compassionately deal with your reports and we will do everything we can to bring offenders to justice.”
Anyone with information or wants to report a sexual offence is asked to call 101 where you will be spoken to by specially trained officers or you can pass information to Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111. In an emergency, always call 999.
If you have been a victim of sexual assault or rape, you can access specialist support services, which are free of charge and available to anyone. You do not need a referral or to have reported an incident to Merseyside Police before you access these specialist support services.
These services can support you in a variety of ways, including offering a confidential discussion if you are thinking of making a police report, but are unsure what that involves and would like to discuss it.
If you do decide to report to Merseyside Police, you will receive support throughout the investigation and court processes.
You can choose to make an anonymous report through the Sexual Assault Referral Centre called Safe Place, or the Independent Sexual Violence Advisor service, rather than coming directly to Merseyside Police.
With no police involvement, a specialist doctor at Safe Place can examine you to check that you are ok and look for DNA evidence, which they will store to support your case. This gives you the option of making a formal police report at a later time, if you choose to.
Support is also available in Liverpool, Sefton, and Wirral, from Rape and Sexual Abuse Support (RASA) Merseyside who are available on 0151 558 1801 and, in St Helens and Knowsley, by the Rape and Sexual Abuse Support Centre (RASASC) Cheshire and Merseyside who can be contacted on 01925 221 546 or 0330 363 0063.
If you do not require immediate police assistance then you can report rape and sexual assault via this website: https://www.merseyside.police.uk/ro/report/rsa/alpha-v1/advice/rape-sexual-assault-and-other-sexual-offences.
Support is also available through the Police and Crime Commissioner’s Victim Care Merseyside service: https://www.victimcaremerseyside.org/.
For women who have felt or feel unsafe in public spaces the Home Office has set up a pilot service https://www.police.uk/pu/notices/streetsafe/street-safe/ (www.police.uk) for anyone to anonymously report public places where they have felt or feel unsafe, because of environmental issues, e.g. street lighting, abandoned buildings or vandalism and/or because of some behaviours, e.g. being followed or verbally abused. Please note: ‘StreetSafe’ is not for reporting crime or incidents.
If you or anyone you know have been affected by the people highlighted in this article, then please report those individuals to the Police on 101 (999 if an emergency) or visit their online resources for further details of the options for reporting a crime. You can also make a report at Crimestoppers should you wish to be completely anonymous. There is help available on our support links page.