Sally Anne Bowman's murderer Mark Dixie given two additional life sentences for two other sex attacks

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Mark Dixie, who is in jail for the rape and murder of teen model Sally Anne Bowman, has been given two more life sentences at Southwark Crown Court for two further sex attacks.

Dixie's previous life sentence meant he was not eligible for parole until 2040, when he will be 69, and the new sentence means it will be another four years until he has a chance of being freed.

Judge Jeffrey Pegden QC told Dixie, who pleaded guilty to charges of rape, indecent assault and grievous bodily harm at an earlier hearing: "These offences are serious offences."

Miss Bowman's family sat in court as the judge said: "I am satisfied that you remain a serious danger to the public."

He said Dixie's offending had "escalated significantly" until he was jailed for the teenager's murder, adding: "The risk of repeated violent sexual harm remains very high."

Father-of-three Dixie, with a large tattoo visible under his grey polo shirt, appeared by video link from HMP Frankland in County Durham.

He sat with his hands clasped in front of his face as prosecutor Zoe Johnson QC outlined his horrific crimes, which she said showed "an escalating pattern of violence towards women coupled with sexual depravity".

At his 2008 Old Bailey trial, Dixie denied murdering Miss Bowman, claiming he had sex with her after coming across her already dead or dying in the street.

But the jury took just three hours to return unanimous guilty verdicts.

Dixie wrote to police in January 2015 saying he wanted to "tell the truth" about what happened to the blonde teenager, before telling detectives he had killed her in a frenzied attack that included biting her after she fled from her boyfriend's car in a row.

He told police he had not raped or murdered anybody before, but went on to admit two further attacks, after he was told by the investigating officer: "That's not entirely true. I know something you did in 1987."

The prosecutor said Dixie's confessions may have been him seeking to take responsibility for his offending, but added: "Or is there an element of maintaining a degree of notoriety?"

The first victim was targeted by Dixie in her own car at an isolated south London car park in 1987, who then tied her up inside and set the vehicle on fire.

She said he "seemed delighted in her evident fear" as she became hysterical, thinking she was about to die.

The woman, aged 44 at the time, managed to free herself and raise the alarm, but was left "utterly petrified" when she received two chilling phone calls from her attacker in the following days, the court was told.

In a victim impact statement, she said: "I didn't seek counselling, I had survived, I was in one piece. I just wanted to get on with life."

The second attack, in 2002, saw Dixie bludgeon a woman with a chef's steel, normally used to sharpen kitchen knives, before telling her "I'm going to kill you" and molesting her.

She managed to escape when Dixie was interrupted by a man who heard her screams.

When he confessed to the crime, Dixie told police: "I was sitting there, I had a person who's unconscious next to me quiet, no one's heard anything.

"I could have done whatever I wanted to, but this person saved this woman and saved me from doing something worse."

The court heard Dixie took his victim's mobile phone during the attack and later boasted to her ex-boyfriend in a call: "I've battered her. I've battered her. I've left her by the railway."

In a victim impact statement the woman said: "It is difficult to assess, over the years, how this incident has affected me. I was determined that it would not stop me from living my life."

By the time Dixie was jailed for Miss Bowman's murder, he had already been convicted of charges of robbery, indecent exposure and indecent assault in the UK, while his trial heard of another horrific sex attack in Australia, where he lived for six years.

Dixie has also admitted a serious sexual assault in Spain in 2005, his barrister Andrew Mooney said.

Ms Johnson said: "We know now, having the full picture as we do now, that offending history has continued throughout Dixie's adult life until his incarceration. We know it spans a number of jurisdictions."

She said there was "an element of excitement in witnessing a victim's fear", highlighting Dixie's desire "to almost relive or reinvent" his crimes by phoning his victims, or those close to them.

"What these offences demonstrate, which is apparent in the murder of Sally Anne Bowman, is an emphasis of control and humiliation of his female victims."

Speaking outside court after the sentence, senior investigator Chris Le Pere said of Dixie: "He's a monster."

The officer, who was part of the original team that put Dixie in jail for Miss Bowman's murder, said: "Women are safer with Mark Dixie behind bars.

"We know he's offended in Australia, Spain and here, and I believe he's committed other serious offences here and abroad.

"I would appeal to anyone with information about Mark Dixie to come forward."

He said police currently have no evidence to link Dixie to any other rapes or murders, but added: "As an investigator, with my experience, I would find it very surprising if he had not done something extremely serious we don't know about."

Mr Le Pere said Dixie was still "very dangerous", adding: "I would be very surprised if he would ever not pose a threat to the public or a danger to the public, but that's for other people to decide."

PA