A paedophile who snatched a 13-year-old girl from outside her school and subjected her to a brutal sex attack in “every parent’s worst nightmare” was today given an indeterminate prison sentence.
CCTV footage captured evil Colin Riddall (pictured on the left), 44, loitering in the street seconds before he picked up the girl “like a baby” and snarled:”You’re coming with me bitch”.
He blindfolded and gagged her and warned: “If you scream, I’ll kill you”, before bundling her into his car.
The crazed sex beast then subjected her to a harrowing three-hour ordeal in which he beat, throttled and sexually assaulted her.
Riddall drove her to a secluded field and removed her trousers and knickers before forcing her scarf – which he had used to blindfold her – into her mouth and throttled her.
His terrified victim then passed out and was deprived of oxygen for a “considerable” time, during which Riddall sexually assaulted her.
When she came round he ordered her to dress and then drove her back to the spot where he abducted her and shoved her onto the road half-naked.
In a “remarkable” feat of courage, the brave teen memorised car valeter Riddall’s number plate and all the details of his car before walking to a friend’s house for help.
Riddall was given an indeterminate sentence of nine years six months, with a minimum of four years nine months and was made to sign the Sex Offenders register for life at Gloucester Crown Court yesterday. He did not appear for his sentencing.
Prosecuting, Mr Julian Kesner QC, said: ”The defendant, Collin Riddall abducted his victim and subjected her to a terrifying ordeal that lasted nearly three hours.
“His victim was 13 in chronological years but anyone who met her for the first time would assume she was much younger than 13.
“He didn’t know her and when he abducted her, as someone who didn’t know her, would make the assumption that she was a lot younger.
“After taking her he physically assaulted her, he sexually assaulted her and in her own words she thought ‘he was going to kill me’.
”He throttled her to the point that she was as a consequence left behind with the signs of strangulation, such as burst blood vessels around the eye.
”He showed his victim no mercy and no shame and great damage has been caused to the victim.”
The court heard how Riddall, of Quedgeley, Gloucester, struck on the 16 October last year when he “went looking” for a young person to kidnap at around 5pm.
He parked his car outside a local school and pretended to be fixing the engine.
At around 5.50pm is victim left a nearby male friend’s house so she could get home before it got dark and came across Riddall and his Renault Megane.
She instantly felt “wary” and tried to step back in order to run away from him, but before she could he ran up to her, picked her up and threw her into his car.
Shortly afterwards motorist Tim Beer, 54, spotted Riddall on the side of a verge, repeatedly punching his victim in a ”frenzy”.
He desperately tried to follow the car and called police but could not keep up as Riddall raced along country lanes at 60mph.
Riddall then drove to a field and strangled the girl to the point she passed out.
When she came round “hyperventilating” and with pain to her eye, jaw and stomach, he ordered her to get back into the car.
Before he let her free, he snatched her mobile phone and dug his nails into her hand to remove a ring – which prosecutors believe he was trying to take as a sick momento – but it was too tight and wouldn’t come off.
Riddall then let his victim, who was half-naked, out of his car and drove off, before being arrested by police in Aberystwyth – almost 100 miles from Gloucester – hours later.
In an impact statement read of to the court, the victim’s mother, who cannot be named, said the incident had “destroyed” her daughter and family.
She said: “Her life has changed completely. She no longer sleeps, she is scared to sleep as she has nightmares.
“She will no longer go out on her own. She hasn’t returned to school since the incident as she was taken from outside her school.
“She physically shakes if she sees a man that she doesn’t know. She is very depressed.”
She added that Riddall’s actions had “destroyed” her daughter and family.
The court heard that Riddall was of previous good character and no explanation could be given for his “bizarre” actions.
David Aubrey QC, mitigating, said reports into Riddall’s mental state could not find any reason for his crime.
Riddall had been experiencing difficulties in his personal and financial life and was “drinking heavily” – and had done so before the incident.
He added: “He had expressed his remorse and his regret at what he did.”
Riddall pleaded guilty kidnapping, false imprisonment, sexual assault and actual bodily harm at an earlier hearing.
His Honour Judge Tabor passed an indeterminate sentence of nine years six months, to serve a minimum of four years nine months, for her kidnap.
He also passed a sentence of nine years for assault by penetration and two years for a charge of false imprisonment, to run concurrently.
Riddall will remain on the Sex Offender’s Register for life.
