A woman who pretended to be a man and tricked her partner into penetrative sex has been sentenced to over 20 years in jail.
Blade Silvano, 40, was found guilty of two counts of sexual assault by penetration at Cambridge Crown Court on May 23 and has now been sentenced to 10 years and six months in prison on December 20.
The deceit of Silvano
Silvano defines herself as pansexual but twice fooled her victim into sex with an ‘unknown object’ under the pretence she was a male, Cambridge Crown Court previously heard.
Silvano, from Bishop’s Castle, Shropshire, is understood to have never allowed the partner to touch her genitalia. She also lied about being a member of the British Army and having cancer.
Following her sentencing, Judge Philip Grey said he had heard ‘some of the most dishonest evidence I’ve heard in my time on the bench’.
The judge added that she had been convicted over ‘utterly, utterly overwhelming’ evidence.
The couple are understood to have lived separately but communicated often and reports claim they had been in the early stages of planning a wedding – although Silvano claimed to have never met the victim.
When did the pair meet?
The pair are understood to have met in 2016 on Plenty of Fish and had been seeing one another for around two years.
Reports claim that the pair had met up in December of that year, where they ‘kissed’ and went on to have ‘intercourse’.
Victim impact statement
Speaking at the trial, the victim, who referred to Silvano as he, said: ‘When we had sex, Blade would usually blindfold me and I was not allowed to look at the penetration occurring.
‘He would never allow me to go near his genital region and I never saw his penis.’ She said she was ‘able to move my hands freely down the side and his back,’ but added: ‘I was never able to put my hands underneath his clothes or down his boxers.’
The victim added: ‘He would rebuff me every time I tried to make an advance; he would nudge me away.
‘He was using sex toys on me; it was not allowed the other way round. He told me he was a man and it was on that basis I agreed to have sex with him. He didn’t tell me he was female but he penetrated me with something – and I haven’t consented to it.’
Statement from authority
Detective Constable Leeza Phillips, who investigated the case, said: ‘This was an extraordinary investigation and unlike any case I’ve seen before in Cambridgeshire. Silvano carried out the ultimate deception and has caused extreme distress to her victim.
‘Without the full facts, the victim was not able to give her consent to a sexual relationship and this whole situation has left her feeling violated and traumatised.
‘As this case highlights, we have specially trained officers who are there to support victims and bring offenders to justice. I hope the victim and her family can now find some closure from this traumatic period.’
Silvano has also been put on the sex offenders register indefinitely.
