Crystal Dike
A British court on Friday sentenced a 21-year-old transgender woman, Ciara Watkin, to 21 months in prison for deceiving a man about her gender identity before engaging in sexual activity.
Watkin was convicted at Teesside Crown Court on two counts of sexual assault and one count of assault by penetration after jurors found she failed to disclose that she was transgender before having sexual contact with the complainant, whom she met on Snapchat in June 2022.
According to the prosecution, Watkin prevented the man from touching her below the waist by claiming she was on her period. The man later discovered her transgender status through text messages and reported the incident to authorities.
The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) said Watkin’s deception deprived the complainant of informed consent, which formed the basis of the charges. The victim told the court he would not have consented to the sexual activity had he known she was transgender.
In addition to the prison term, the court ordered Watkin to be placed on the sex offenders’ register for 10 years and issued a restraining order prohibiting contact with the victim.
The case, among the few of its kind in the United Kingdom, has reignited debate over consent laws and the disclosure of gender identity in sexual relationships.