Man jailed for raping teen he followed off Bristol bus Published duration 14 April

image copyright Avon and Somerset Police image caption Michael Murray attacked the girl in Bristol

A man who raped a teenage girl after following her off a bus has been jailed for nine years.

Michael Murray, 29, attacked the girl in Stapleton Road in the Easton area of Bristol on 9 January.

He pleaded guilty to rape and a separate charge of common assault when he appeared via video-link at Bristol Crown Court on 7 April.

Murray, of no fixed address, will serve nine years in jail and six years on an extended licence.

Avon and Somerset Police said his victim gave a detailed description of her attacker so they were able to track him down on CCTV footage in the area at the time of the assault.

Murray was handed a concurrent four-month prison sentence for the common assault on a second victim, who he hit with a cigarette lighter after she rebuffed his advances.

He was also given an indefinite restraining orders in relation to both victims and he will remain on the sex offenders register indefinitely.

Det Sgt Stuart Toms said Murray posed "a significant risk to women and in particular, to teenage girls and it's reassuring to know he will now be locked up for a lengthy period of time".

"Sexual assaults by strangers are rare in Avon and Somerset but when they do happen we do everything we can to identify offenders and bring them to justice," he said.