Andrew Wheeler, 46, displayed an ‘arrogance and a belief that he was untouchable and protected, as he saw it, by his paramedic’s uniform,’ the judge said
A paramedic who raped a patient in her own home and sexually assaulted another in his ambulance while she was unable to breathe has been jailed for 21 years.
Andrew Wheeler, 46, displayed an ‘arrogance and a belief that he was untouchable and protected, as he saw it, by his paramedic’s uniform,’ the judge said.
He was also found guilty of two counts of sexual assault of a child under the age of 13 in respect of a girl who was not a patient.
Judge Matthew Lowe added that Wheeler had shown ‘not a shred of remorse’ and said: ‘He’s demonstrated that he’s a manipulative sexual predator, willing to exploit for his own gratification the vulnerabilities of three separate (victims).’
The most recent offence came in 2018 when the defendant, from Mill Green, Warboys, was called to help a collapsed woman in Cambridgeshire while on duty as a single crew paramedic.
When he arrived it became apparent that the woman, who was at her friend’s house, was drunk, Peterborough Crown Court heard.
Wheeler sent away two other paramedics who arrived together in an ambulance, assuring them he had everything under control, then drove the woman to her own house where he raped and sexually assaulted her.
Wheeler (pictured arriving at court last month) was also found guilty of two counts of sexual assault of a child under the age of 13 in respect of a girl who was not a patient
Noel Casey, prosecuting, said the woman was ‘extremely intoxicated’ and was ‘unable to properly respond or even resist what he did to her, and he did these things while she was alone in her own home, the defendant having taken her there’.
He added: ‘There was a gross breach of trust.’
In a victim impact statement read to the court, the woman said: ‘I have no faith in the NHS and I’ve avoided seeing a paramedic and attending the hospital just because of what happened.’
She said she has flashbacks, adding: ‘I couldn’t handle dealing with life. I became a recluse.’
For this rape he received a 13-year sentence and for the sexual assault he received 10 years, to run concurrently to each other but consecutive to the others.
In a separate incident in 2010 Wheeler sexually assaulted a female patient in the back of his ambulance.
Mr Casey said: ‘She was suffering from anaphylaxis, she was unable to breathe, she was therefore unable to properly respond or even resist.’
He added: ‘It was also a gross breach of trust, the defendant being the treating ambulance technician on the day.’
During the trial, Mr Casey said: ‘He took the opportunity to touch her breasts and while administering adrenalin he said “that’s not the first time I’ve had to jab you with something”.’
Wheeler had previously raped the same woman in 2009 on an occasion when she was not a patient.
For this rape he was sentenced to six years and for the sexual assault on her he was sentenced to 30 months, to run concurrently to each other but consecutive to the others.
Wheeler, 46, (pictured left in 2019 and right, arriving at court earlier this month) was convicted of a string of sexual offences including raping a patient in her own home in 2018
Wheeler was also convicted of two counts of sexual assault on a girl under 13, not connected to his work, between December 2013 and May 2014.
He was sentenced to 15 months and two years for these offences, to run concurrently to each other but consecutive to the others.
It means he will serve 21 years total in prison, and he was also made the subject of an indefinite Sexual Harm Prevention Order.
The judge said that Wheeler would never work as a paramedic, or in a similar capacity, again.
Jennifer Dempster QC, mitigating, said Wheeler had no previous convictions and was someone who has done a ‘great deal of positive work in his life’.
Detective Chief Superintendent Martin Brunning said: ‘Andrew Wheeler is a predatory individual whose offending has spanned nearly a decade.
‘We believe his decision to become a paramedic was influenced by the access it would give him to potentially vulnerable members of the public and this breach of trust makes his appalling offences all the more deplorable.
‘He has caused a huge amount of suffering and trauma for his victims and I would like to pay tribute to their bravery in coming forwards and the patience and dignity they have shown throughout a lengthy legal process.
‘I can’t imagine what they have gone through but I hope today’s sentencing allows them to continue rebuilding their lives knowing that justice has been done.’