Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
Romanian tried to rape gran as she walked to work
A TERRIFIED grandmother endured a horrific sex attack by a Romanian criminal with a catalogue of previous violent offences.
Cezar Florea, 29, was drunk when he approached his victim as she was walking to work at 6am on June 7, 2014.
The 52-year-old suffered a broken nose and arm as she was beaten and kicked during the attack, which was broken up when passer-by Adam Norman intervened.
Florea snatched his victim’s handbag as he fled. The thug had already served time in Romania for having sex with an underage girl, and had a string of robbery convictions.
But he was able to travel and find work in a car wash in Middlesbrough, Teesside. After his attack he went on the run in Romania for three years, where he did another robbery.
His victim’s family want to know why he was allowed to move freely to and from Britain.
Florea admitted attempted rape, assault and robbery but his victim could not face seeing him again at Teesside crown court yesterday, when he was jailed for 16 years.
Her daughter said: “How was a man with such a long history of crime allowed to come to Britain? There has to be closer monitoring of people with this sort of history.
“My mum has never fully recovered.”
In a victim statement, the woman said she had been a happy, fun-loving person.
She said: “I have suffered life changing injuries and scars… I relived the trauma every day.”