British Soldier Craig Michael Stormey Jailed Following Rape of 6-Year-Old Girl
A British soldier stationed in Austria, Craig Michael Stormey, has been jailed for nine years following the vicious rape of a 6-year-old girl in her home. The U.K. soldier had been taking part in an army adventure camp when he let himself into the young girl’s family home and preyed upon her after entering her room back in November, 2014.
Stormey, 30, plead guilty to the rape of the 6-year-old inside her home following a ski training session in the Stubaital Alpine valley. Despite this, Stormey claims he has no memory of the assault as he was drunk after partaking in heavy drinking immediately prior to the crime.
“There is no explanation for what I did, and there is also no excuse. All I can remember is fighting inside a house with a man, and a woman who held a child in her arms,” Stormey stated in court.
The father of the 6-year-old intervened in the assault after being woken in the early hours of the morning by the noise inside the home in Neustift, where he proceeded to discover the half-naked soldier inside the bedroom of his daughter. After restraining Stormey, the father of the minor called the police, where the U.K. soldier was immediately taken into custody.
“I was half asleep and first thought it was my wife but then I realised she was lying next to me,” the girl’s father described his reaction upon the discovery of Stormey inside his home. “Then I saw the naked stranger in another room with my daughter. I completely flipped and hit him several times in the face.”
Spokesmen for the British Army declined to comment at the time of arrest.
Soldier jailed for raping 6 year old http://t.co/VPLnXliCFR pic.twitter.com/ZqBWtOqPRf
— news.com.au (@newscomauHQ) July 15, 2015
The sentence was made after Stormey appeared in court at Innsbruck, western Austria, although a spokesman for the court in the province of Tyrol stated that Laszlo Szabo, legal representative of Stormey, plans to appeal against the verdict.
“The combination of alcohol and [post traumatic stress disorder] played a major role,” Szabo explained. “In spite of this, he had shown no such inclinations for all his life and therefore his actions remain inexplicable.”
In the case of an unsuccessful appeal, Craig Michael Stormey will be given the opportunity to request permission to serve out his sentence in a British prison, rather than remaining held in Austria.
A Ministry of Defence spokeswoman responded to questions regarding the prosecution of Stormey, saying “We can confirm that a British soldier has been convicted in Austria of the rape of a minor and assault of a state authority, and is sentenced to nine years imprisonment.”
Craig Michael Stormey had been a member of the 7th Parachute Regiment Royal Horse Artillery at the time of the assault, and has yet to be discharged from his position in the British Military following the sentencing.
[Photo: Stock image via Shutterstock]
