A MAN has admitted raping and robbing a woman in her 60s close to the riverbank in central York.

Abrar Khan, 29, has a history of violence, York Crown Court heard.

He was living at the Southview probation hostel in Boroughbridge Road, York, when he raped and robbed the woman close to the River Ouse between Scarborough Bridge and Clifton Bridge late on January 2.

At the time, police described the victim as a “vulnerable” woman.

Khan’s barrister Laura Marshall said police in South Yorkshire had previously suspected him of assaulting a different woman with intent to rape her, but when the case came to court, he had been convicted of assaulting her with intent to rob her.

The York case was adjourned for reports. Khan will return to York Crown Court on July 16 when Judge Andrew Stubbs QC will decide whether he will receive a normal prison sentence or a special kind of jail term reserved for dangerous offenders.

The judge warned him it would be a long sentence and told him: “You have pleaded guilty to a very serious offence. It will only be a question as to the type of sentence and the length of sentence you will serve.”

He ordered the probation service to prepare a report on how dangerous Khan is and the risk he poses of causing serious harm to other people.

Khan, of no fixed abode, pleaded guilty to raping the woman and robbing her of £2.60 in small change, both on January 2. He was remanded in custody, where he has been since his arrest shortly after the rape.

He wrote a basis of plea which said: “On the night in question, I was heavily in drink. I don’t remember what happened.”

The basis said Khan couldn’t contradict the woman’s account of what he did to her and he knew of no reason why she should lie about him.

“I know I have behaved very poorly in the past when in drink. I accept responsibility for my actions,” the basis concluded.

Ms Marshall said he had “numerous convictions for robbery on his record".

A psychiatrist had assessed Khan as fit to plead before he entered a not guilty plea earlier this year and the case was then adjourned to a trial date later this month.

But when it returned to court for an interim hearing, Khan changed his plea.

The psychiatrist will now prepare a report on Khan for the sentencing hearing.