- Sunday, December 10, 2023
Raghu Singamaneni ran two parlours and lured women on jobs app
By: Chandrashekar Bhat
A 50-YEAR-OLD, who used the lure of jobs at his massage parlour to rape young women across London, has been sentenced to 18 years of imprisonment.
Wood Green Crown Court unanimously found Raghu Singamaneni guilty of rape and sexual assault involving four women. His sentencing took place on Friday (16).
The trial heard how Singamaneni ran two massage parlours on Holloway Road, Islington, and High Road, Wood Green, in north London.
He would advertise on a jobs app for women to work at his parlour and make appointments to meet the aspirants before carrying out sexual assaults, the Metropolitan Police said.
“This man used his position of authority to carry out a string of sexual assaults on young women. Many of these women were lured by the hope of employment, but were then subjected to the most dreadful sexual assaults,” said detective constable Hussain Sayem, who led the investigation.
The first victim who reported the matter to the police was 17 – she had arranged to meet Singamaneni for an interview.
She told police that she met him at his parlour and he went through the training she would need.
She again met Singamaneni at the parlour the next day and he gave her a glass of prosecco. She told the police that she then became so intoxicated she was sick.
Singamaneni then took her to a hotel where he carried out a sexual assault – attempting to rape the woman.
Just more than two weeks later, the victim made a complaint at Tottenham police station in London and Singamaneni was arrested and released under investigation while further enquiries were made.
A second offence was related to a 19-year-old woman who reported rape at her place of work in north London. She told police that Singamaneni had asked for a massage, insisted that she drink some vodka and then raped her.
Enquiries revealed another offence occurred when a 23-year-old woman arranged to meet Singamaneni after answering a job advert. She arranged to meet him at a hotel and when they entered the hotel room, Singamaneni plied her with alcohol and later forcibly removed her clothing and raped her.
The last offence happened at another north London hotel involving a 17-year-old female, who had also applied for a job as a masseur and had spoken to a woman about an interview. The woman told her to go to the hotel where she would meet someone to have a trial massage.
Singamaneni offered her drinks and drugs and then raped her, the court heard.
She left the hotel and called a friend who then reported the matter to the police.
The Met Police said detectives compiled evidence from the women and Singamaneni was arrested. He was convicted of three counts of rape; two counts of sexual assault and one count of attempted rape – relating to four women.
(PTI)
