Rapist who left woman for dead then watched innocent man go to prison jailed for 21 years

An ‘evil’ rapist who nearly killed a stranger in an extremely violent attack and then watched on as an innocent man languished in prison for it has been jailed for 21 years.

Paul Quinn, 52, targeted a lone woman while she walked home alone in Little Hulton, Salford, in the early hours of July 19, 2003.

The victim, then in her 30s and a mum to young children, was strangled until she passed out into a deep state of unconsciousness, then badly beaten and twice raped in a ‘prolonged assault’.

Local security guard Andrew Malkinson became a second victim in the case when he was wrongly identified as the perpetrator and jailed a year later in one of the worst ever miscarriages of justice.

After the sentencing hearing, Malkinson said: ‘I am insulted that this violent, depraved individual – who was content to let me suffer two decades of vilification and more than 17 years wrongly imprisoned for his crime – has received a softer sentence than was imposed on me, an innocent man.

‘I got sentenced to life imprisonment and served more than 17 years inside.

Andrew Malkinson spent 17 years in jail for rape after he had been wrongly convicted and jailed (Picture: PA)
‘Throughout that time, I didn’t know if I would ever be released.’

Quinn, who lived less than a mile from the scene and has convictions for sex offences going back to when he was 12, was arrested almost two decades later after advances in DNA testing meant in 2022 a billion-to-one match of his DNA profile was made with saliva left on the woman’s vest top.

By then, Mr Malkinson, from Grimsby, North East Lincolnshire, had made multiple failed appeals.

Now aged 60, he was only released in 2020 after 17 years in jail, with his conviction finally quashed by the Court of Appeal in 2023.

Mr Justice Bright jailed Quinn for 21 years today at Manchester Crown Court, with an extended three years on licence for dangerousness.

The judge referred to the woman as the ‘hero’ of the case, rather than as a victim or survivor, in his remarks as he passed sentence.

Paul Quinn was found guilty by a jury at Manchester Crown Court of rape (Picture: GMP/PA)
He said: ‘She, not you Paul Quinn, is the person from this case who I will remember for the rest of my days.

‘She is truly a hero.’

Mr Justice Bright said it was obvious how ‘excruciating’ it was for her to come back to court for a second time.

‘She is a remarkable person.’

He continued: ‘One unusual feature of this case is that, while the person most directly affected by the offences was the woman you attacked so viciously and raped, there have also been dire effects on Mr Malkinson.’

The judge said Mr Malkinson’s wrongful conviction was attributable to mistakes made by police, prosecutors and scientists rather than to Quinn.

But he added: ‘However, I find myself unable to ignore the extraordinary circumstances involved from your perspective.

‘It is utterly clear that you knew throughout that another man had been arrested, charged, convicted and imprisoned.

‘You knew that his conviction was wrongful. You also knew that it was extremely useful to you. It must have preyed on your conscience that another man was in prison, in effect serving your sentence.

‘It would be entirely wrong to compare the indirect evil that you have done to Mr Malkinson with the direct physical evil that you have done to the heroic woman who suffered at your hands that night.

‘But I do consider your conduct to both of them evil, and the harm done to both of them must be reflected in your sentence.’

‘After 20 years, I now have justice’

The woman Quinn attacked said in a statement: ‘After 20 years, I now have justice but that does not change the fact that two lives have been impacted in such a way.

‘I am aware that someone has had 17 years robbed as a result of this case and that stays with me.

‘As for me, the impact of what happened that day has stayed with me and will remain with me for life.

‘Every day I look at my face and see the disfigurement, the scarring. It is a permanent reminder of that night and what I experienced. I have to live with that.’

In a statement released through Appeal, a charity that campaigns against wrongful convictions, Mr Malkinson said: ‘I am insulted that this violent, depraved individual – who was content to let me suffer two decades of vilification and more than 17 years wrongly imprisoned for his crime – has received a softer sentence than was imposed on me, an innocent man.

‘I got sentenced to life imprisonment and served more than 17 years inside. Throughout that time I didn’t know if I would ever be released.

‘Paul Quinn, who has a track record of violence and sexual offences, and who let me rot whilst he enjoyed his freedom, could now be out after just 14 years, and will certainly be out after 21 years.

‘I hope that this man does not get parole and that he serves longer than me. Anything less is not justice.

‘I am also appalled for the victim, who has su

SOURCE: https://metro.co.uk/2026/06/05/paul-quinn-jailed-rape-innocent-andrew-malkinson-went-prison-28661493/