NOTT FAMILIAR?
Karen Danczuk’s brother jailed for 15yrs for raping her and 2 others
JANET Wass, 53, of Arnold, Nottingham, was crowned TripAdvisor’s Explorer of the Year for reviewing obscure sites in the Midlands.
THIS is the grinning beast who turned an innocent nine-year-old’s childhood into a living nightmare.
Michael Burke has been caged for 15 years for raping his sister, selfie queen Karen Danczuk, and two other victims.
A judge yesterday branded him the big brother who changed “happy play with his little sister” into rape in the home.
Mrs Danczuk, 33, estranged wife of Rochdale MP Simon Danczuk, called her brother “a monster” and revealed she had been driven to the brink of suicide.
Mr Justice Gilbart insisted Burke, 38, posed “a serious threat to women”.
He added: “Your first victim was your little sister. What was a happy play relationship between a big brother and his little sister turned from games of tickling and hide and seek into one of touching.
“When you were 14, you made her submit to sex. She endured your attentions until the age of 11 when she finally stood up to you and told you to stop. Your treatment of her has had serious effects.”
The judge told Manchester crown court: “Instead of looking back on her first sexual experiences as something to be remembered fondly, she looks back to being raped by her brother.
“That is a terrible burden to bear and you have shown not a shred of remorse. Your defence, that this was a conspiracy to help her publicise herself, is a claim I regard as totally absurd.”
The judge said that a pre-sentence report on Burke showed that he had “entrenched, distorted and well established” attitudes towards women and posed a “high risk of serious harm”.
Prosecutor Peter Wright QC said that Mrs Danczuk’s rape ordeal had “blighted her life throughout her childhood and into adulthood”.
Mrs Danczuk, famed for revealing selfie photos on social media, is a regular panellist on ITV’s Loose Women. On one show she broke down, saying that testifying in court was “like being in hell”.
During the trial, Mrs Danczuk gave evidence from behind a curtain.
She said: “Most people remember their first time having sex with somebody they love. My first time was with my brother. It’s horrible. I will never love properly.”
Burke, of Rochdale, was convicted two weeks ago of eight counts of rape and another serious sexual offence against three women over an 18-year-period.
He must serve at least two-thirds of his sentence and on release will have a licence period of five years. He will be on the sex offenders’ register for life.