A rapist has been sentenced to 10 years and six months in prison almost 19 years after he attacked a woman in Acton.

Detectives had retained contact with the victim/survivor ever since the horrific attack in 2004 and remained devoted to the investigation, resulting in today’s sentence.

Adrian Satchwell, 60 (12.04.62), of Dairy Close, Willesden, was finally brought to justice after dedicated and determined officers and staff across the Met used DNA evidence to build a case against him.

Satchwell was sentenced on Wednesday, 29 March at Isleworth Crown Court after being previously found guilty of rape following a trial.

Following the 10 years and six months imprisonment, he will be on license for a further two years.

At around 01:00hrs on Sunday, 4 July 2004, Satchwell attacked and raped a woman in Acton Park. He was with another man who remains unidentified.

The victim reported the incident after it happened to police who carried out numerous enquiries over a number of years. A DNA profile of the attacker was obtained however there was no matching identity on the national police data base.

Despite challenges detectives did not give up and followed several leads including CCTV enquires, e-fit production and circulation, working with Interpol and the examination of other similar offences at the time.

A breakthrough came in 2017 when Satchwell was arrested in connection with a sexual assault investigation and as is standard practice when someone is arrested, his DNA was taken.

The DNA was ran through the police data base and shortly after officers were informed his DNA profile matched that of the sample collected at the time of the rape in 2004.

At this point the Met’s Cold Case team assisted and reviewed the investigation, and identified further tests that could be carried out on exhibits to see if the second suspect could be identified, which was unfortunately negative.

The DNA samples were resubmitted for testing in order to ensure the strongest evidence could be presented in court.

Satchwell was charged with two counts of rape in August 2021 following a lengthy investigation process impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic.

Detective Sergeant Susan Phillips led the investigation. She said: “Despite there being a 19 year gap between the rape and today’s outcome, the Met has not given up and remained dedicated to putting the man responsible for this horrifying attack behind bars.

“Satchwell is a violent, predatory rapist and it is a relief to know he will spend many years in prison. What he did to the victim had a profound and lasting impact on her life. He has shown no remorse.

“I was determined to get justice for the victim who has remained stoic over the past 19 years. Her dedication and commitment to the investigation and throughout the trial has led to today’s outcome. She is an incredibly brave woman.”

During an impact statement read out in court, the victim said:

“Before this happened to me I had a lot of self-confidence. I would go out with friends but since this has happened I have found that I am a lot more restrictive with what I do. At the time I became a lot more withdrawn, not talking to anyone and devoid of emotion.

“To this day, I find that I am still anxious, I suffer from panic attacks, chest pains and shaking. I walk around in a constant state of hypervigilance.

“I am so grateful for the tenacity of DS Susan Phillips, to purse and delve in to this case and to not let it go. The other police officers and barrister at court made me feel so comfortable and I am so grateful. There have been so many difficult stages along the way, but they have just made it so much more comfortable.

“I am relieved to have had what happened to me validated by the jury. That man is disgusting, he disgusts me that he lied and made up different stories along the way to try and avoid what he did to me.”