A man has been sentenced to five years and six months in prison for pretending to be a taxi driver, kidnapping a woman, and coercing her to expose herself. Damian Watson, 36, targeted a woman outside Anfield Stadium in Liverpool after she mistook his white Mercedes van for her Uber ride. Watson then locked the doors, demanded that she reveal her breasts, and kept her captive for around 30 minutes.
During the incident, the victim became alarmed when she realized her Uber ride had been canceled and did not recognize her surroundings. Despite her pleas to be taken to the city center, Watson aggressively insisted on her exposing herself multiple times. The victim complied out of fear, believing she was in danger of being assaulted.
Watson eventually drove the victim to the city center, where he released her. It was later discovered that he had recorded the ordeal on his mobile phone. Despite denying the sexual requests during questioning, Watson admitted to kidnapping and engaging in non-consensual sexual activity.
In court, it was revealed that Watson had pre-planned the offense by setting up his phone to record the incident. The judge commended the victim for her courage and condemned Watson’s deliberate targeting of a vulnerable individual. In addition to his prison sentence, Watson was issued with a sexual harm prevention order and will be listed on the sex offenders’ register for life.
