A rapist who fled from court after being found guilty of raping a 16-year-old girl has been given a longer jail sentence.
As the jury reached their verdict, Bradley Tout, 20, jumped the dock and ran out of Worcester Crown Court in October.
He handed himself in four days later, and was given an extra six months on top of his seven-and-a-half year sentence, after pleading guilty of escaping from lawful custody on Friday.
Tout caused chaos at the court on October 3 – and was long gone by the time a security worker apparently tripped and was injured during efforts to find him.
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Sentencing Tout, who appeared in court via a prison video link, Judge James Tindal said the 20-year-old had exhibited panic and, bluntly, cowardice as he ran from court.
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The judge told Tout, of Durham Road, Ronkswood, Worcester: Whatever was going through your mind as the jury reached their verdict, ultimately you have to have responsibility for what you did.
I accept this was never a planned escape. You were standing there, blithely expecting the jury to say “not guilty” when they said “guilty”.
In the heat of the moment you bolted, you ran, you caused chaos in the court building and it may well be someone tripped and fell in the aftermath of it.
Imposing a six-month consecutive sentence for the escape offence, the judge added: There has been a furore about this case, Mr Tout – a furore which is regrettable and obscures the seriousness of the original offence.
I give you full credit for your plea and the fact that you handed yourself in after four days, knowing full well that you would be going to prison for a very long time indeed.
Prosecutor Paul Whitfield said Tout – who had been convicted of raping a teenage girl – jumped from the dock as the judge was in the process of remanding him in custody.
Telling the court that police had not incurred any significant expenditure during Touts four days on the run, Mr Whitfield added: There was a short chase but he was not detained.
He came eventually with his parents to the police station and handed himself in.
When interviewed, he said he considered he was innocent. He had been in turmoil and said he had reacted to what was unfolding in front of him.
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Defence counsel Abigail Nixon said: Nobody got anywhere close to catching him – he was long gone before the security staff went after him.
A court previously heard how Tout and his friend Kulin Odedra, 28, who was jailed for 11-and-a-half years for two rapes, one assault by penetration and one attempted rape, had assaulted a girl in Touts car in 2016.
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