A woman was gang raped by three Londoners who picked her up in a car when she was walking alone in Cambridge. Florin Buti was sentenced to more than eight years in prison at Peterborough Crown Court on Thursday (April 11), after assaulting the victim and using her stolen bank card at a service station on the way home.
The 19-year-old, from Ridgwell Road in Canning Town, was with three other men in Cambridge city centre in the early hours of February 2022 when they discovered the victim strolling alone and persuaded her into a car before driving to a remote place outside the city. Buti, along with Florin Sardaru and Carlos Sali, raped her and drove her back to the city. The fourth man wasn’t involved in the rape.
While the victim contacted police, shameless Buti used her bank card at a London service station. An investigation by Cambridgeshire Constabulary revealed CCTV footage of the group’s movements – described as ‘predatory’ – before the attack.
Officers then located the automobile to a London home, where they discovered it had been sold within hours of the crime. Police confiscated the vehicle and found critical evidence, allowing them to charge all three criminals. The fourth man was apprehended but later freed without charges.
Sardaru, 27, and Sali, 19, both of Shrubland Road in Hackney, were sentenced to 12 years and four months and seven years and eleven months, respectively, after admitting to rape on the first day of their trial in November 2022.
Buti denied rape and fraud by false representation, but he was convicted following a trial at Peterborough Crown Court.
DC Katie Housham stated: “Buti felt he could get away with his role in this heinous crime, but he was mistaken. I’m glad he’s now faced justice. I’d want to thank the victim in this case for her bravery throughout the inquiry and judicial proceedings.
“Buti and the other defendants in this case definitely sought out a woman to attack, and their predatory behaviour was clearly seen on CCTV tape. I would advise anyone who has been a victim of a sexual offence, whether recent or not, to report it and seek help.”
