A SEX fiend who locked a terrified female escort in the basement of his flat before beating and raping her has been jailed for 10 years.

Timothy Hjertum subjected a Chinese sex worker to a catalogue of horrific sex crimes in a three-hour ordeal which saw her jump 40ft half-naked from the second-storey window of his flat to escape.

Unemployed Hjertum, of Deptford Broadway, Deptford, was sentenced by Judge Phillip Norris at Woolwich Crown Court on April 20 after being found guilty by a jury on April 3.

The victim, who cannot be named, was driven to an address supplied by Hjertum on September 13 last year while on her first job for a north London escort agency.

Former shop assistant Hjertum, 44, throttled his screaming victim before slapping her across the face and pushing her onto the bed.

He forced her arm behind her back before attempting to rape her anally and forced her to urinate in his mouth.

Throughout her ordeal the victim feared she would be killed so she jumped out of the window when Hjertum left the room, landing on the pavement below.

A passer-by found the 34-year-old woman unconscious, suffering from a broken elbow, broken teeth and cuts and bruises.

Hjertum was found guilty by a jury of six men and six women of rape, attempted rape, two counts of assault by penetration, one count of false imprisonment and one count of causing a person to engage in sexual activity without consent.

He denied all charges through the three-week trial in which evidence was aired relating to previous sex allegations.

The court heard how two different female escorts jumped from Hjertum's flat on January 8 last year in similar circumstances after he threatened them with a knife.

He was charged with two counts of false imprisonment but was acquitted following a trial at the Old Bailey.

Evidence was also aired relating to another female escort who made allegations of rape and assault against Hjertum in June 2004.

An arrest was made but the charges were dropped.

Judge Norris said: "You have exhibited a disturbing and dangerous pattern of behaviour.

"You completely terrified your victim so much she thought you were going to kill her.

"It makes no difference she is a prostitute. A prostitute is entitled to the same protection from the law as any woman."

Hjertum bowed his head as he was taken down by prison guards.

Judge Norris said he would be able to apply for release on licence after serving four years and 149 days.

The conditions of his release means he would be banned from making contact with any escort agency, dating service and from living in any dwelling above ground level.

Head of Operation Sapphire at Lewisham Police Detective Chief Inspector Sean Wanless said: "This man preyed on women who he thought would never have the courage to report his crimes to the police.

"Operation Sapphire is dedicated to providing victims of sexual assault with a premium service. You will be taken seriously and the crime will be investigated."

NEWS SHOPPER COMMENT - WHERE'S THE JUSTICE?

A HIDEOUS, vile rapist, who also tortured and carried out acts on his victim which are too unspeakable to be mentioned here, is caught and locked up. EXCELLENT.

The fact this monster may be on our streets again in four years. NOT GOOD.

But, the sickest joke of all is that following his release the judge says he can only live in a ground floor dwelling.

Presumably the poor wretch being raped at knifepoint deserves the chance to avoid dying from the fall in her efforts to escape! NOW WHO'S SICK?

Perhaps future female victims should count their blessings and thank Judge Norris - they may be tortured, forced to carry out acts beyond normal comprehension and then quite possibly be murdered - but, if they're lucky enough to prise themselves out of this fiend's clutches, they might now avoid the broken bones sustained from a 40ft fall. Now there's justice.

For God's sake, if we don't have the option to kill him legally and put him out of society's misery, then, at the very least, lock him in a black hole and throw away the key.

Scum like this should be put down. Unless of course, you swallow the argument put forward by the defence that women who become escorts, for whatever reason, deserve treatment of this sort.

For suggesting Hjertum should die for what he has done, I do not apologise.

For suggesting this judge is failing us all, I do not apologise.

If you found this story disturbing then I'm sorry, but after careful thought I decided people must know what monsters like Hjertum are capable of. And also that he'll be among us again in less than half a decade.

I'm also sorry if you found the explicit details upsetting, but please be reassured we did not publish the true grisliness of this case.

ANDREW PARKES, EDITOR