Rapist on run who attacked woman at knifepoint jailed in his absence after being accidentally freed from prison

A RAPIST on the run who attacked a woman at knifepoint has been jailed in his absence after accidentally being freed from prison. Bernadin Dedic, 48, lured the woman to a basement in Ealing, West London, and raped her multiple times. Bernadin Dedic was jailed at Isleworth Crown Court Credit: Alamy The fiend raped a woman at knifepoint Credit: PA He was remanded in custody last year but was mistakenly set free from HMP Wormwood Scrubs after a court official wrongly told the prison that he had been granted bail. Within hours, Dedic fled the UK on the Eurostar and returned to his native country of Bosnia. Sign up for The Sun newsletter Thank you! The fiend gave a string of excuses for not returning to face justice – including claims he had a heart attack, was involved in a skiing accident and had a fear of flying. Dedic was convicted in his absence of four counts of rape, two counts of sexual assault by penetration and causing a person to engage in sexual activity without consent. He was also found guilty of threatening a person with a knife in a private place and making a threat to kill. Dedic has now been jailed for 18 years in his absence, with Judge Hannah Duncan saying he is “refusing to return to the UK for his sentencing. Isleworth Crown Court heard the predator carried out the attack shortly after separating from his partner. He drank four bottles of red wine and snorted lines of cocaine before luring the woman to his basement. Most read in The Sun Prosecutor Simon Sandford said: “When downstairs, she turned towards the stairs and saw him, holding a red-handled oriental kitchen knife. “He stepped towards her, took hold of her and said he would kill her and then kill himself. “She was extremely frightened but tried to calm him down. He said if she screamed, she wouldn’t be heard.” Dedic was accidentally set free from prison on February 6 after a court official mixed up digital case files and mistakenly recorded he had been granted bail. The notice was then sent to the prison, which led to Dedic’s release Dedic claimed he wanted to come back to stand trial but was struggling to obtain a visa. His UK passport was seized by the Metropolitan Police during the rape investigation but after being set free from prison, he used his Bosnian passport to secure a seat on the Eurostar. A senior judge, police officers and Border Force agents attempted to bring the fiend back to the UK for his trial but Dedic claimed he could not travel as he had a knee injury so the trial was delayed until June. But the rapist again failed to show – this time insisting he suffered a heart attack in Sarajevo – so the case went ahead without him. Following his accidental release, HM Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS) launched an investigation. A spokesperson said: “We understand the distress errors such as this can cause to those affected and instances like this have exposed deep-rooted issues across the broken justice system the Government inherited.”