A British transgender woman, Ciara Watkin, 21, has been sentenced to 21 months in prison after a UK court found her guilty of deceiving a man into sexual activity by falsely presenting herself as biologically female.
According to reports on Friday, Watkin, from Thornaby, Stockton-on-Tees, met the victim through Snapchat before persuading him to engage in sexual contact. The victim later told Durham Crown Court that he would never have consented had he known Watkin was not female.
Prosecutors revealed that Watkin went as far as fabricating stories about menstruating to reinforce the deception. The court dismissed her claim that the victim “should have realized” her true gender identity.
Judge Peter Makepeace KC, in his ruling, said the act was a calculated attempt to mislead the victim, stressing that he “fully believed from start to finish” that Watkin was female. He added that her actions were driven by frustration and a desire to engage sexually with heterosexual men.
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Watkin, who has not undergone any form of medical transition, will serve her sentence in a male prison, where officials have assured that appropriate safety measures will be taken. She was also placed on the sex offenders register for 10 years and given a lifetime restraining order banning her from contacting the victim.
Investigators described her conduct as a “deliberate concealment” designed to manipulate consent and exploit the victim’s trust.
The case has reignited debate across the United Kingdom about consent, gender identity, and deception in sexual relationships, drawing sharp reactions on social media and from legal experts concerned about emerging ethical boundaries in gender-related cases.
