A SEX attacker has been jailed for life for terrorising FIVE Crewe women - and raping one at knifepoint - in the space of just six weeks this summer.

As the only newspaper actually in Chester Crown Court to cover the case the Guardian can exclusively reveal the full account of Andrew Hughes' terrifying sex crime spree, which began on April 16 when he followed a woman home and tried to engage her in sexual activity.

Over the following six weeks, 35-year-old Hughes embarked on his own crime wave in which he forced a woman to touch him sexually, sexually assaulted another female, assaulted a man and woman, and stole a mountain bike.

The height of his callous spree came on May 28, when he entered a 32-year-old's home and subjected her to a horrendous knifepoint ordeal in which he twice raped her and twice assaulted her by penetration.

At Chester Crown Court, Judge Elgan Edwards branded him 'a danger to women' and locked him up indefinitely for public protection.

In early May, the court heard that Hughes, of no fixed address, robbed a 30-year-old cyclist's mountain bike by riding behind him on Ernest Street, punching him in the head and threatening him with a stanley knife.

The next day, Hughes used a piece of wood to smash a 36-year-old man with such force that the weapon broke and the victim suffered severe bruising and eyesight problems.

On May 20, the court heard that Hughes grabbed a 22-year-old as she walked along Wistaston Road, pinned her against a garage and pressed a knife against her neck while ordering her to take her clothes off.

The defendant fled on a mountain bike when his victim screamed for help and two men came to her rescue.

Just half an hour later, Hughes twice struck another woman in the face and clamped his hand over her mouth, but the 25-year-old fought back and escaped.

On May 28, his final victim was awoken by the sound of footsteps upstairs in her house when she was sleeping on the downstairs couch.

Prosecutor Peter Frost said: "She pretended to be asleep but she felt a knife against her neck, opened her eyes and saw a male with a pillow case over his head.

"The knife was used to cut the cord on her trousers and the defendant told her to take off her top and began pulling on her bra."

Hughes then sexually assaulted his victim using a wine bottle and forced her to touch him sexually before taking her upstairs and assaulting her with a vibrator.

He twice forced her to perform a sex act on him at knifepoint.

At court, the 35-year-old asked for two offences to be taken into consideration and pleaded guilty to theft, sexual assault, two counts of rape, two counts of assault by penetration and two counts of assault occasioning ABH.

Defending, John Murray said Hughes was genuinely remorseful and was struggling to come to terms with his offending.

Judge Edwards expressed his admiration for the victim's courage, saying: "It is clear it had a devastating effect on that lady and it must have been a horrifying experience for her."