A Paget man who raped and robbed a woman at knifepoint and committed a series of housebreakings last year was yesterday sent to prison for 20 years.

Assistant Justice Charles-Etta Simmons handed down the hefty sentence despite assurances from 37-year-old Rick Roydell Simmons that he was a changed man and born-again Christian.

"I've come to a point in my life where I just can't take any more of these evil and wicked deeds,'' he said before the judgment was announced.

Simmons also apologised to the people of Bermuda "for the pain I brought'' and encouraged young people to "pay attention'' in deciding the direction they took their lives in.

The Cobbs Hill Road resident admitted to the offences after he was arrested on July 5 last year, hours after he broke into a Paget residence, which the woman, a housekeeper who cannot be named for legal reasons, was looking after while its owners were away.

After awaking to find Simmons sitting on top of her and holding a knife to her throat, the woman handed over her wallet, which contained $21, and was forced into having unprotected sex with him.

Despite the woman's pleas for him to stop, Simmons kept going until his climax, all the time telling her that he liked her. Crown counsel Larry Mussenden noted that the defendant had an "appalling'' criminal record and committed this offence just weeks after he was released from serving time for another offence.

And he said: "It is a woman's worst nightmare come true to wake up in a house that she thought was secured and find someone sitting on top of her with a knife.

"No amount of counselling or treatment will be able to remove the effects of this crime that were so tragically thrust into her life.'' Rapist jailed for 20 years Continud from Page 2 Mr. Mussenden said Simmons had "struck a blow against every woman in Bermuda'' by committing this crime and added that he felt the public, especially females, had a right to feel safe in their homes at night.

He also noted that, despite Simmons' guilty pleas, the victim still had to suffer "the terror of anticipation that she might have to live the entire ordeal again by testifying in court''.

Mr. Mussenden asked Mrs. Justice Simmons to "send a signal that these sort of offences will simply not be tolerated by a civilised society''.

Simmons' lawyer Mark Pettingill called on character witnesses to testify to his client's "miraculous turnaround'' since the incident occurred.

Prison Fellowship officer Ed Fisher said Simmons had "showed true remorse and commitment to change'' while participating in scripture union meetings at Westgate prison.

And his brother Frank Simmons said he believed he really had changed.

Mr. Pettingill also noted that Simmons was addicted to heroin and crack cocaine when he committed the serious sexual assault and two housebreakings in September last year, which he was also sentenced for yesterday.

On passing sentence, Mrs. Justice Simmons said: "You raped an innocent, defenceless woman while threatening her with a knife. I am obliged to pass a lengthy sentence so that you can be punished properly...'' She sentenced Simmons to 15 years in prison for the serious sexual assault and seven years for the armed robbery, which are to run concurrent with each other but consecutive to two more sentences of four years for housebreaking and five years for burglary.