Man Jailed 13 Years for Predatory Sexual Assault on Leicester Canal Towpath

A man has been jailed for 13 and a half years for a brutal sexual assault on a young woman walking along the Grand Union Canal towpath in Leicester — an attack the judge described as “every woman’s nightmare”, carried out in broad daylight by a predator who had planned it, waited under a bridge for his victim, and returned to the same area to hunt for a second.

The Attack on the Frog Island Towpath

Warren Laight, 30, of no fixed address, was sentenced at Leicester Crown Court on Friday 17 April after pleading guilty to assault by penetration and attempted rape. He will serve three-quarters of his 13-and-a-half-year sentence before being considered for parole, following a ruling of dangerousness. He will then be subject to an extended licence for a further five years.

The attack took place on the evening of Wednesday, 11 June 2025, at approximately 7.50pm — still daylight — as the victim, an NHS worker, walked along the towpath beside the Grand Union Canal near Frog Island. She had passed Laight near the King Power Stadium earlier on her walk. He turned around and followed her, doing up his hoodie and pulling the hood over his head.

Just before reaching the A50 road bridge at Frog Island, Laight overtook her, then waited in the shadows beneath the bridge. As she passed, he grabbed her, slapped her and put his hand over her mouth, bending her over the railings as he sexually assaulted her. The prosecutor told the court she believed she was going to be pushed into the river. “It was like he was going to kill me,” she said.

Laight told her he was going to rape her. He was pulling at her clothing when people in a nearby building — who had heard her screams, which were also captured on a business CCTV camera — shouted at him from a window. He fled.

Approximately 15 minutes before the attack, CCTV reviewed by Leicestershire Police revealed that Laight had chased another woman at the same location. She escaped and was never identified. He returned to the area about an hour after the attack, and Judge Steven Evans stated at sentencing that he had returned looking for another potential victim.

Prosecutor Paul Prior told the court: “This was a planned sex attack and Mr Laight had earlier been watching pornography on his phone and was sexually aroused. He selected a secluded location for the attack and overtook her at a crucial moment and waited for her under the bridge.”

After his arrest, Laight denied the charges and failed to attend the first day of his trial. He appeared on the second day and pleaded guilty. A family member provided a false statement on his behalf during the investigation.

He was also sentenced for an assault on his mother at her home in Derby — to which he had pleaded guilty — and for possession of cannabis at the time of that arrest in May 2025.

The Victim’s Words

The victim, who was left with bruising to her stomach, arms, legs and neck, gave a victim statement that was read at the sentencing hearing. She is an NHS worker. She said: “My role demanded compassion, empathy and care — and that is who I was. Now I’m fighting to find her again.”

“I used to go for walks to clear my head. It gave me space to breathe. Now I’m too afraid to leave the house unless my partner is by my side. I’m always on edge — always preparing for another attack.”

She described being unable to go shopping, use public transport, or be anywhere alone. She has been prescribed medication to manage panic attacks, including anxiety triggered by cars stopping outside her home. “Every time a car is outside my house a little too long, I’m convinced someone will come inside to attack me. I did not choose to live like this. It’s boring, it’s exhausting and it’s not who I used to be.”

A Pattern of Violence Against Women

This was not Laight’s first attack on a woman. The court heard that when he was 18, he grabbed a stranger and told her he was going to rape her before punching her in the face. He was disturbed by a man and a woman, to whom he claimed his victim had been attacking him. He then pointed to the female witness and said: “I would rape her, though.” He was convicted of two sexual assaults and actual bodily harm and sent to custody.

Judge Evans described this earlier offence as “a significant aggravating factor” and said he did not accept that Laight had no memory of the canal attack. “You knew perfectly well what you were doing. You are angry. There is hostility to your family. I can’t begin to guess what it is that makes you regard women as people to be attacked, sexually and violently, and as people to be dominated.”

Laight’s defence barrister told the court her client had been repeatedly assaulted by his stepfather and taken into care at the age of 13. A letter from Laight was read in which he said he did not remember the attack and that he hated himself.

Detective Constable Josh Evans of Leicestershire Police said: “This is a deeply concerning case given the victim appeared to be chosen at random by Laight, who displayed predatory behaviour. Despite initially denying he had any involvement — and a family member providing a false statement on his behalf — this evidence was key in leaving him with no alternative but to admit what he’d done.”

The Towpath That Women Already Know Is Not Always Safe

There is a temptation, in writing about cases like this, to focus on the sentence — to note that 13 and a half years is substantial, that the dangerousness ruling means he will not simply walk out at the halfway point, that the Sexual Harm Prevention Order and restraining order are in place. All of that is true and it matters.

But the victim’s statement — every precise, exhausted line of it — is a reminder that the sentence does not restore what was taken. A woman who walked along the canal to clear her head, as thousands of Leicester residents do, cannot do that any more. She cannot go to the shops alone. She cannot use public transport alone. She cannot be inside her own house without anticipating attack. The bruises have healed. The damage has not.

The attack happened at 7.50pm on a June evening — still light, near the King Power Stadium, in an area of the city where people walk regularly. Laight chose his location deliberately: the underside of a road bridge, a dark section of a path where screams might not be heard. He had been watching his victim for some time. He chased one woman before her. He came back looking for another after. This was not an impulsive crime. This was a predator operating with method and intent in a city centre location, in daylight.

ONS data shows that 82% of women report feeling unsafe in parks and open spaces at night — a figure that dwarfs the 42% of men who feel the same. Research on women runners and walkers consistently shows that experiences of being followed, threatened or assaulted on towpaths and trails are common enough that many women have simply modified their behaviour to account for them. This case is a reminder of why.

That is not an argument for women to stop walking along canals. It is an argument for continuing to take cases like this with the seriousness they deserve, for ensuring that CCTV on towpaths is functional and well-positioned, and for recognising that a man with a prior conviction for sexual assault and actual bodily harm was able to return to the streets and commit a nearly identical crime a decade later.

The woman in this case showed remarkable presence of mind under attack. She provided a description that allowed officers to identify Laight on CCTV. Without her composure, he might never have been caught. She deserves far better than the life the attack has left her with. And the city should be paying attention to what happened to her on that towpath in broad daylight last June.

We will keep covering cases of violence against women in Leicestershire, and the criminal justice outcomes that follow.

Have Your Say

Do you feel safe using Leicester’s canal towpaths? We want to hear from residents — leave a comment below. Anyone with information about offences on or near Leicester’s waterways can contact Leicestershire Police on 101, or report anonymously via Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111. Sign up for our free local news updates to stay informed about safety in your area.