British grime artist on trial for raping and abusing 4 women while he films

A grime artist based in Bristol raped several women and filmed the act “for posterity”, a court has heard.

Andy Anokye, a 31-year-old, known by his stage name Solo 45, is accused of holding women against their will, bullying them and sexually abusing them over a two-year period, The Guardian reports.

The artist has denied the 31 charges including 22 counts of rape and five counts of false imprisonment.

He also faces two charges of assault by penetration and two charges of assault occasioning actual bodily harm.

At Bristol Brown court on Thursday, Christopher Quinlan QC, prosecuting, told jurors that Anokye “imprisoned, physically assaulted and sexually violated and raped four women.”

“He filmed, for posterity, a great deal of what he did.”

The prosecutor added that each of the four women would give evidence during Anokye’s trial expected to last for five weeks.

The first alleged victim, aged 26, met Anokye at a Skepta gig and he went on to abuse her, Quinlan said.

The second is a 23-year-old while the third, 25, met the rapper in a London bar where he allegedly assaulted her physically. Another complainant who was also reportedly attacked by the defendant reported the incident and this led to Anokye’s arrest.

Anokye was a grime artist, Quinlan said, describing the genre as “a form of dance music influenced by garage music”.

“He was known, or became known, to each of the four women through their knowledge or taste for music of that type,” he said.

“They don’t know each other,” he added.

Quinlan said the artiste would argue that the sexual conduct with anyone of them was consensual while, on the contrary, he put his victims in fear and questioned them nonstop about their sexual history.

On one occasion, Anokye “waterboarded” one victim, leaving her “petrified”, and claimed he had tapped her phone, the court heard.

“What turns him on appears to be, at least in part, the tears and sobbing of another,” Quinlan said.

“We say he is a violent and controlling narcissist, a bully, a sadist who derives satisfaction and sexual pleasure from inflicting pain and suffering on women who we allege are his victims.”

On another instance, the musician allegedly drove a woman to a secluded area and forced her to remove anything that could identify her. He told the woman that he had people in the area who would kill her if she refused.

Anokye allegedly stabbed another woman in the leg, used a knife to strike her head and poured bleach in her mouth. When the police grabbed the rapper, his mobile phones and computer showed searches for the term “dacryphilia”.

“Essentially it means sexual arousal from another’s fears,” Quinlan said.

Anokye has denied all the charges against him. The case continues.

Part of collective, Boy Better Know, Anokye shot to fame in 2014 with the single Feed Em To The Lions. He has worked with other big names in the industry such as Skepta, Wiley, Stormzy and JME.

The musician’s accusations come on the back of R&B singer, R. Kelly, who has been catching some serious unabated heat and bashing from a section of industry stakeholders, as well as, some people in recent times for his alleged sexual abuse history.

The first part of Lifetime’s three-night documentary series, “Surviving R. Kelly”, was aired last week detailing accusations of sexual abuse and paedophilia by the singer.

Survivors, as well as witnesses, shared chilling accounts of their experiences sparking outrage on social media. R. Kelly has denied the allegations.