UPDATE (Jan. 15, 2021): Following a recent hearing, Andy Anoky's sentence has been upped from 24 years to 30. The Court of Appeal has ruled that the initial sentence was "unduly lenient" and he will now spend 30 years in jail for the 30 charges he was originally jailed for, per Sky News.
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UPDATE (July 30): Solo 45 has been jailed for 24 years for the rape and imprisonment of four women. He was found guilty of 30 charges at Bristol Crown Court.
The former artist, born Andy Anokye, was charged with 21 rapes, two counts of assault by penetration, two counts of assault occasioning actual bodily harm and five counts of false imprisonment.
Anokye has been on trial since January 2019, but the trial collapsed in February when one of the jurors became ill and the judge was forced to adjourn the case.
The judge for the case, William Hart, has imposed an extended sentence, which means that Anokye will serve 24 years in prison and five on licence. He will be ordered to sign the sex offenders register for the rest of his life.
Original story below.
Solo 45, real name Andy Anokye, best known for his song "Feed 'Em To The Lions" (which Island Records has pulled from all DSPs), has been on trial since January 2019 for raping four women. However, the trial collapsed in February when a juror fell ill and Judge William Hart was forced to adjourn the case.
Anokye denied all 31 charges, which included 21 rapes, five counts of false imprisonment, two counts of assault by penetration, and two counts of assault occasioning actual bodily harm (ABH). However, he admitted to the jury that he had originally pleaded guilty to assaulting the first complainant.
During the rescheduled trial, again led by Judge William Hart, the four victims of Anokye gave evidence resulting in the grime MC being charged on 21 counts of rape. Graphic and disturbing videos filmed by Anokye were played during the trial, allegedly showing him raping the complainants.
The jury in the trial, which consisted of seven men and five women, considered their verdicts on Monday morning (March 9), and during prosecutor Christopher Quinlan QC's closing speech to the jury, Anokye was described as "a narcissist and a violent bully". He went on to say that, "Not one of the women from whom you have heard said that they consented to what he says is a game — the rape game. They marked a boundary and he trashed it because he doesn't recognise boundaries, either for himself or others."
Solo 45's defence lawyer, Sally O'Neill, told the court that the videos they watched were "rough, sometimes unpleasant but importantly consensual, sexual activity". O'Neill argued that the four women in question were "independent, adult women" who were operating on a "level playing field". She also commented that the women had "full knowledge" of the type of sex that Anokye liked to engage in, and therefore agreed to give consent.
Anokye, who grew up in Tottenham, North London, was originally arrested in 2017 following a woman claiming she had been raped at his home in Bristol.
Judge William Hart will reconvene for sentencing at a later date, and has also ordered a psychiatric report to be carried out on Anokye.
