A judge has praised the 'resourcefulness and courage' of two women who were raped by a man in south Belfast as he was handed a 13-year jail sentence on Thursday.

Orhan Kibar - who is originally from Turkey and who has been living in Northern Ireland since 2005 - was convicted earlier this year of raping two women in the early hours of 24 November 2017.

The girls, who were 18 and 19 at the time, met Kibar outside Queen's Students Union where he invited them both back to his flat.

He attacked one of the women in his bathroom before turning to her friend in his Russell Court property on Claremont Street.

Judge Paul Ramsey QC said Kibar "deliberately targeted these two girls he knew were vulnerable by reason of their intoxication", adding "once they agreed to go to his flat, their fate was sealed."

Kibar maintained that all the sexual activity in his flat was not only consensual but was instigated by the friends, a version which the jury unanimously rejected.

He was convicted of three counts of rape and one count of false imprisonment.

The jury heard during the two-week trial that Kibar invited the women back to a party.

There was no party, and once inside the property the 19-year old soon fell asleep, while the 18-year was offered a cigarette.

The 18-year-old went to the bathroom, and when she was on the toilet, Kibar followed her and locked the door.

He was aggressive, there was a lengthy struggle and he raped and imprisoned her in the bathroom in an ordeal which lasted around half an hour.

She was finally able to flee and make her escape from the flat when she bit him on the hand.

When she escaped onto the street, she bumped into someone she knew, explained her ordeal and the police were called immediately.

Meanwhile, inside the flat Kibar then turned his attention to her sleeping friend, who was woken with him on top of her raping her, in his bedroom.

She told Kibar she needed to go to the toilet, and after a few minutes he let her go to the bathroom.

As she stepped out, a now naked Kibar pushed her back into the bathroom and during a struggle he broke one of her fingers. He then held her down and raped her a second time, before she too managed to escape.

As she was fleeing the apartment, she encountered police officers alerted by her friend in the corridor of the block of flats.

She was able to point them to Kibar's flat, and he was arrested.

Passing sentence, Judge Ramsey noted Kibar's "deluded thinking about woman" and said he displayed a "determination" to have sex that night, with or without consent.

The Judge also described Kibar's behaviour as "cold and collected", said he was someone prepared to use violence to get his own way and added: "I find this behaviour in a mature man as both alarming and shocking."

Detective Sergeant Graeme McArthur, from the PSNI's Public Protection Branch, said: “I welcome the conviction of Kibar who was found guilty of three counts of rape and one charge of false imprisonment.

Detective Sergeant Graeme McArthur Credit: Pacemaker

“Rape is one of the most serious of crimes and this prolonged attack by Kibar on two young women would have been terrifying. It will undoubtedly have a significant and lasting impact on them.

“Both victims displayed tremendous courage in coming forward to police. Seeing a case such as this through the criminal justice system can be daunting, particularly as Kibar pled not guilty, but detectives in PSNI’s Public Protection Branch support victims and thoroughly investigate these types of offences.

“I welcome the sentence handed down by the judge today. Whilst this will not undo what Kibar did to these two young females, he is now in custody for his crimes.

"I hope this will encourage other victims to report offences to police and be assured that we will treat you with the utmost professionalism and sensitivity.”

Kibar was handed a 13-year sentence, with a three-year extended licence period imposed.

He was also made the subject of a ten-year Sexual Offences Prevention Order which will take effect when he is released from jail, and will be on the Sex Offenders Register indefinitely.