A RAPIST who attacked a tourist in a park after she had asked him for directions has been jailed for 15 years.

The young woman thought she was going to die as Tyler Higgins strangled her in Bute Park in Cardiff city centre before he sexually assaulted her.

The victim was attacked after she found herself lost and alone during the early hours of the morning in the Cathays area.

The woman had been out with friends on a night out but they had gone home.

He seemed amused, he was giggling

She was trying to make her way back to her hotel in the city centre after leaving a party during the summer when she came across Higgins.

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Matthew Roberts, prosecuting, said: “She didn’t know how to get home and additionally her mobile phone was out of charge.

South Wales Argus:

Detectives released this CCTV image as part of their investigation

“She asked him for directions. He said he was out on a night walk and would not mind taking her there.”

Higgins first took her in the opposite direction towards Whitchurch Road before walking her down Cathays Terrace and through Bute Park.

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They entered the park near the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama after he had suggested a “shortcut”.

He attacked her before they would have exited near the Angel Hotel and Pettigrew Tea Rooms on the main road at Castle Street.

South Wales Argus:

Tyler Higgins. Picture: Facebook

Mr Roberts told Cardiff Crown Court: “The defendant grabbed her around the neck and slammed her to the floor.

“She said he strangled her for what seemed like ages.

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“The victim was pulling his hair but she said he was stronger than her.

“She thought she was going to die.”

Higgins then raped her twice.

The prosecutor added: “The victim said he seemed almost amused at what he was doing. He was making giggling sounds.

“It was a violent rape and afterwards, incredulously, the defendant apologised to her.

“He said he could be forceful and told her he ‘gets like that.’”

Mr Roberts added: “The damage done to the victim is incalculable.

“She said in her victim personal statement, ‘I am now afraid to be alone with another male. I feel I won’t be able to trust a man again. I thought I was going to die.’”

The defendant was arrested after detectives released CCTV images and he was picked out by the victim in an identity parade.

When police went to arrest him they found him washing the jacket he had worn that night and he told them he’d thrown his trainers in the bin.

Higgins, 20, of Brithdir Street, Cathays, Cardiff, pleaded guilty to two counts of rape committed on July 15.

Hashim Salmman, representing Higgins, said: “No mitigation could ever offer comfort to the victim.”

His barrister added how his client had no previous convictions and asked the court to take into account his young age.

Mr Salmman said: “He wishes he could take back what he did.”

The defendant was aged 19 at the time of the offences.

Judge David Wynn Morgan told Higgins: “You went about this in a cold-blooded way.

“All you were interested in was sexual gratification.

“You treated her as an object and the consequences of what you did have been extremely grave.

“Your victim was alone, unaware of her geography and intoxicated.

“There was a significant degree of planning, indeed cunning.

In Tyler Higgins, we had a dangerous individual

“You confused her. You disorientated her. You took full advantage of her in the dark and in woodland.

“You present a risk of serious harm to adult females.”

Judge Wynn Morgan commended South Wales Police for the “quality and speed” of their investigation.

Outside the court, Lucy Dowdall, a senior crown prosecutor with the CPS, said: “Rape is a devastating crime which the CPS are committed to tackling.

“The thorough investigation conducted enabled the CPS to build a strong case including identification and forensic evidence, which resulted in a guilty plea.

“We hope the conclusion of the case will help the victim with her healing process."

After the case, Detective Inspector Grant Wilson, from South Wales Police, said: “Stranger attacks such as these are extremely unusual in Cardiff but in Tyler Higgins we had a dangerous individual.

“He was out during the early hours of the morning with no good reason and took advantage of a lone, trusting female.”