UK doctor raped in St Lucia fears attacker will never be caught

A British doctor who was raped while on holiday in St Lucia believes her attacker will never be caught due to the “woeful” response from police.

Mother-of-two Georgina Mortimer had booked a 10-day stay in February last year with an all-female sailing school.

But on the second night of her trip, she endured a horrific assault which took place in the room of her villa at Rodney Bay.

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The 46-year-old woke up in complete darkness to find a man with his hand around her throat, raping her.

Eighteen months on and the events of that night still haunt the victim.

But she has waived her right to anonymity to highlight what she claimed to be a sub-standard response from St Lucian authorities.

‘Terrifying’

Mrs Mortimer travelled to island in 2016 with the aim of learning to sail.

The Oxford University graduate had been staying in a villa provided by the company Girls For Sail, which is based on the Isle of Wight.

But on the night of 6 February, she was raped in her room after returning from a street carnival.

Mrs Mortimer, who now lives in Hertfordshire, where she works as a doctor, said: “I was woken from a deep sleep and there was a man on top of me with his hand arched around my neck.

“It was one of those things where you can’t believe it is actually happening, it was terrifying.

“I was thinking about all of the people I loved and thought that I was going to be snuffed out.”

“But when something like that happens you have this laser-like focus on survival.

“I felt that the only thing I had to do was to not fight this person, because I was only just getting enough air into my lungs.

“I was saying to him that I couldn’t breathe.”

She said was saved when another man knocked on the door to her bedroom after hearing that she was struggling to breath.

As he opened the door, the attacker ran out of the room and fled the scene.

But her ordeal was far from over.

After going to hospital for further examinations, police asked her to return to the scene of the attack to provide a statement.

Bizarrely, Mrs Mortimer claimed it was done so in the presence of the police officer’s four-year-old daughter.

“The response from authorities was just woeful,” Mrs Mortimer said.

“I was told in June [2016] that police had still not processed my DNA samples because there was no lab on the island.

“They then said there was no point processing it until they had DNA from the suspect.”

Still suffering

Mrs Mortimer, whose surname has been changed to protect her identity, said she eventually heard that the samples had been tested, but was told no DNA evidence was found.

“As far as I am concerned, that is inconceivable,” she added.

“But the way the police were out there, they were so useless and I just thought from the beginning it was not going to happen.

“As soon as I started doing research, I found there were lots of unsolved crimes.

“I don’t think for a second they will catch the man who attacked me.”

On her return back to the UK she was required to take a 28-day course of medication to stop any potential spread of HIV.

But she had to wait a further three months to find out that she was all clear.

Speaking about the impact it had on her life, Mrs Mortimer said: “It was horrendous having to go back to work.

“I still feel nervous coming into my house when I get back and I lock my bedroom door if I am home on my own.“