NICHOLAS Harding was yesterday finally jailed for raping a woman almost a quarter of a century ago.

Harding, 42, had hoped he had got away with the attack in West Street, Osney, in Oxford, on a snowy January night in 1985, when he grabbed his victim around the throat and threatened to kill her.

He left her lying naked and sobbing in the snow after an attack which has continued to haunt his victim.

The married father-of-one, who served eight years for another rape in the 1990s, was only caught by police in December when new forensic tests on evidence gathered in 1985 matched it to his profile stored in national police records.

It was the first success in Oxfordshire for the police’s cold case review team, set up in 2007, which investigates unsolved murders and sex crimes.

Last night Det Supt Barry Halliday said he was happy to have finally caught such “a dangerous predator”.

Alan Blake, prosecuting, told Recorder Paul Gralick that Harding’s victim, who was a young professional in her 30s, was walking home in the dark following a meal with a friend.

Harding, who was 18 at the time, grabbed her and covered her eyes with a scarf.

Reading her statement, Mr Blake said: “The effect was devastating.

“I am still afraid to go out at night and tingle with anger and worry when I’m out in the dark and someone comes up behind me.

“He has stolen my confidence and freedom, 24 years on and that has gone.

“I’m not looking for revenge the damage has been done.

“I hope he understands the damage he caused and accepts what is afforded to him.”

Harding pleaded guilty at Oxford Crown Court earlier this year after DNA from the conviction for raping a prostitute in Plymouth in 1992 linked him to the rape.

Jennifer Edwards, defending, said Harding had rebuilt his life since being released from jail for the rape in 2000 and was now married with a young son.

She added: “His world is now completely shattered. It is hard to think what he will be able to rescue from his life.”

Sentencing Harding to eight years, Recorder Garlick said: “The offence was a vicious rape.

“It was a persistent attack, your victim was vulnerable, you attacked her in the dark knowing she was unable to resist and you threatened to kill her. To make things worse you had stripped her naked and after you had raped her you left her lying naked in the snow.

“I cannot think of a case with so many aggravating features.”

Mr Halliday said: “Nicholas Harding must have thought he had got away with this crime.

“Our communities and neighbourhoods should feel reassured such matters are never forgotten.

“Harding now knows he was unable to escape capture and the same fate awaits others who have committed these types of serious crime.”

Harding will be eligible for early release after serving two-thirds of his sentence.