A MUM sobbed and begged to be released as she was raped by a man half her age.

Philip Shaw, aged 22, dragged his victim to a secluded spot by the pedestrian bridge over the Runcorn Expressway and raped her, pushing her up against a pillar and threatening her before pulling her to the ground.

He told her he would rape her multiple times during the September 8 attack.

The woman, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, managed to escape him after one attack and ran, screaming and sobbing, to her partner’s home.

She was covered in mud and crying as her father and son called the police.

Shaw was arrested the next day, but changed his story three times before finally admitting the attack on the day of his trial.

The rape came about when Shaw, who was known to the woman, offered to take her to Castlefields to buy cannabis, Warrington Crown Court heard on Monday.

However, he did not buy her any drugs when they were there and she began to walk home.

Shaw followed her and told her he had always had a crush on her and wanted to have sex with her.

She tried to leave but he grabbed her arms, lifted her up and pinned her against the pillar.

He then dragged her to the ground and raped her.

Shaw, from The Glen, in Palacefields, Runcorn, has other convictions for attacks on women, though none are sexual offences.

He has problems with alcohol, drugs and anger management, his barrister Andrew Jebb said.

Shaw was sentenced to seven years and two months imprisonment, minus time he has spent in custody, and must sign the Sex Offenders Register for life.