A man who raped a 15-year-old girl has been jailed for nine years.

Christopher John Smith, 41, threatened his victim that if she told anyone it ‘wasn’t going to end well’.

In a victim impact statement the teenager said she had suffered a lot of ‘awful and horrible’ flashbacks.

She said: ‘I could not handle what happened to me. I was a child. Every day is a struggle. This is never going to go away.’

Smith, whose address was given in court as care of the prison, admitted rape and assault by penetration.

Jailing him for nine years, Deemster Graeme Cook told him that he had taken away the girl’s childhood innocence.

He said there had been an element of ‘victim blaming’ as the defendant had tried to suggest he was in a relationship with her.

The Court of General Gaol Delivery heard that Smith had been drinking beer and gin when he carried out the assault on the evening of July 23 last year.

Prosecutor Sara-Jayne Dodge said the victim did not initially disclose the incident but then subsequently notified several members of her family.

Smith was arrested on September 9 and answered no comment to all questions during his police interview.

He later pleaded guilty to the offences, having made a confession while on police bail.

Deemster Cook accepted that Smith had shown genuine remorse.

He placed him on the Sex Offenders’ Register for life, and made him subject to a Sexual Harm Prevention Order for an indefinite period, prohibiting him from having any contact with the complainant and placing restrictions on his contact with anyone under the age of 18.

He was also imposed an extended licence for 10 years which will apply following Smith’s release from prison.