A roly-poly internet dater who cried rape when a man crept out of a hotel room after they had sex because she didn’t match her online profile has been jailed.
Emily Pike, 23, met Tom Mills on the internet before they checked into a Premier Inn for a steamy romp.
But after deciding that she didn’t match the sexy description on her dating profile, he made a sharp exit and later texted her to say he was helping a friend in an emergency.
Furious Pike then contacted the police and claimed Mr Mills, 24, had raped her in the hotel and car park.
However, CCTV images proved she was lying and the fantasist was charged with perverting the course of justice.
She admitted the charge and was jailed for 18 months at Bristol Crown Court on Tuesday.
Judge Julian Lambert said: “You know it is wrong to lie and it is wrong to lie and get somebody into trouble. Lie about rape and you are getting somebody into big trouble.
“Whether you couldn’t learn, or you didn’t learn, your web of falsehoods led to a young man being arrested for rape.
“He was at risk of many years of prison and he spent 12 hours in custody.”
The court heard how the pair had arranged to meet in Weston-super-Mare, Somerset, for a sexual tryst in October 2011.
But when they couldn’t find a room they checked into the Premier Inn at Cribbs Causeway, Bristol, to have sex.
However, Pike awoke after the encounter to find Mr Mills had vanished.
Anna Midgley, prosecuting, said: “After he left Miss Pike alone she tried to call him. He sent her texts, saying he had to help a friend in accident and emergency.
“After, she called the police. She made an allegation he raped her.
“She said she had consensual phone sex and when she arrived at the Premier Inn he forced himself on her.
“She said they left together and he raped her a second time in the passenger seat of his car.”
Mr Mills was arrested and was subjected to medical samples, swabs and hours of questioning, the court heard.
But when police looked at the hotel CCTV, they saw the pair did not leave together and telephone messages did not back up Pike’s claims.
The court heard Pike, from Caerphilly, south Wales, has 15 previous convictions which include an earlier false rape claim which she had apologised for.
James Tucker, defending Pike, said she had a history for telling “fantastic lies” and also claimed to have married a man in Iraq.
“She understands what she is doing is intended to pervert the course of justice. Why she is doing it is seemingly lost upon her,” he said, adding she had a personality disorder issues.
“She is an incredibly vulnerable person.
“She is acutely vulnerable at her own hands. Prison will punish her and open her eyes as to understanding why she is offending in the way she is.”
Afterwards Detective Constable Richard Worrin said: “We take all reports of sexual assault and rape very seriously and this case should not deter people with genuine complaints coming forward to us.
“In this case, the allegations of rape were proved untrue through CCTV evidence and not by Emily Pike’s own admission.
“I would like to stress that prosecutions such as this are extremely rare but false allegations of rape undermine the experiences of actual victims and can have a devastating impact on those who are wrongly accused.”
