A multi-millionaire tech entrepreneur has been found guilty of drugging and raping two women at a Salford flat.
Lawrence Jones, the 55-year-old former chief executive of web hosting provider UKFast, had denied attacking the two victims in separate incidents at his flat in Salford in the 1990s.
In 2021 and 2022, the women, who did not know each other, made separate allegations of rape against Jones, now of Brooks Drive, Hale Barns.
One complainant described being given something to sniff which had an “immediate impact” on her, while the other described being overly affected by a glass of wine and a few puffs of what she believed was cannabis, Manchester Crown Court heard.
Prosecutor Eloise Marshall KC told the jury: “Both women were stupefied and left partially conscious but unable to react.
“Such was the effect of the drugs that the women, even then, were unclear about what drug had been used and exactly what had happened to them.”
Isla Chilton, senior district crown prosecutor for CPS North West’s rape and serious sexual offence unit, said: “Jones raped two women with no thought for how his actions would affect them.
“By denying the offences, he compounded the harm to the women, attempting to evade responsibility for his actions. The jury saw through his lies and found him guilty.
“I would like to thank the victims for supporting this prosecution and I hope this case will encourage others to seek justice. It’s never too late.”
Jurors were not told that Jones had already been found guilty in January 2023 of sexual assault against a third woman. Reporting of that conviction was not allowed until the conclusion of the rape trial yesterday, November 23. Jones will now be sentenced for all matters on December 1.
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