Female carer who sexually assaulted disabled woman in the shower jailed

A female carer who sexually assaulted a vulnerable disabled woman in a shower has been jailed for three years.

Vicky Hooper told her victim she had a "lovely f****" before groping the vulnerable 37-year-old, who suffers from a nerve condition, while working as her carer.

Chelmsford Crown Court heard that the 29-year-old preyed upon her victim, groping her and dropping her own trousers to expose herself to the victim.

Hooper, who has now been sacked, was employed to look after the victim and help her with day-to-day tasks including personal care until the sexual assault took place in March 2016.

Sentencing her, Judge Emma Peters told her, according to Mirror Online: "You were well aware of the need to do things properly and respect appropriate boundaries.

"You knew what you were doing was wrong, she knew what you were doing was wrong. You describe yourself as bisexual but this was not a lady who wanted your sexual attention.

"She felt utterly helpless and her whole sense of being was questioned by what you did. This is so serious nothing short of immediate custody will suffice."

Hooper, of Trinity Court, Halstead, was originally charged with two counts of sexual assault, two counts of assault by penetration and one count of indecent exposure.

But, following a four-day trial, the jury found her guilty of one count of assault by penetration, one count of sexual assault and indecent exposure. She was acquitted of the other charges.

Hooper was sentenced to three years for the first count, 12 months for the second, and two months for the third, to run concurrently.

The court was told that Hooper has borderline learning disabilities and defending her Sophie Chaplin said she does not have the "usual tool set or understanding and acknowledgement of normal relationships."

The victim said after the hearing: "I hope this case will encourage other victims of sexual abuse to come forward and not to keep things to themselves."