A man who ran a teeth-whitening salon has been sentenced to 26 years in jail for a spate of rapes and sexual assaults spanning more than a decade.
Warning: This article contains details that some readers may find distressing.
Ricky Stubberfield, 31, was convicted of 23 offences against seven women between 2013 and 2024.
The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) said some of the assaults occurred at the Essex Smiles salon in Plymouth, Devon, during the 2022-2024 period he was the co-owner and manager.
The CPS said a number of the women were contacted by Stubberfield on Instagram and offered free treatment in exchange for promoting his business.
When they attended their appointments, Stubberfield made sexual advances before assaulting them.
Other offences were carried out by Stubberfield at a variety of locations around Plymouth.
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The sex predator, of Plympton, was arrested in June 2024 after multiple complaints were made to police.
In July, he was found guilty of eight counts of rape; nine counts of sexual assault; four counts of assault by penetration; one count of making indecent images of a child; and one count of exposure.
Stubberfield was sentenced at Plymouth Crown Court on Tuesday.
He was handed a 26-year jail sentence, plus an additional six years on licence once released back into the community.
Stubberfield was also placed on the sex offenders’ register for life.
HHJ Judge Linford stated: “Your behaviour was utterly remorseless predation.”
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The CPS said Stubberfield first came to the attention of police in February 2022 when a 16-year-old girl reported that he had sexually abused her on two occasions that month.
On one night, he had raped her in the disabled toilet during a concert at Plymouth Pavilions and later in the back of his van on Plymouth Hoe.
On the second occasion at a house, the victim was subjected to multiple rapes and other sexual offences while Stubberfield told her to “be quiet”.
Some of the offences were captured during a FaceTime call to her friend after Stubberfield brazenly pulled her out of view to sexually assault her and forced her to commit a sexual act upon him.
Unbeknown to Stubberfield, his actions were reflected in a nearby cooker hood and seen by the caller, who shouted out to stop him. She had also recorded the call and provided this to police.
The court heard that in 2024, a woman reported that she had been abused by Stubberfield at Essex Smiles.
In response, Operation Highrock was launched by Devon and Cornwall Police’s Project Gemstone, a specialist sexual offences investigation team.
After a third report in 2024, Stubberfield was arrested and charged with multiple offences.
A report in the local media prompted other victims to come forward.
Some believed they were the only one and Stubberfield’s sexualised behaviour had often been dismissed by those who knew him as it being “just Ricky”.
Between 2022 and 2024, he had abused five women, all in their 20s, at the teeth whitening and tanning salon.
Four victims were sexually touched while receiving teeth whitening treatments, three from his social media offers. He also exposed himself to a fifth victim.
In all cases, Stubberfield made inappropriate sexual remarks as a precursor and asked details about their sex lives.
Once in the treatment chair with a mouth guard in, he took advantage and sexually assaulted them, asked for photos and made repeated forceful sexual advances.
One woman described feeling trapped, while another told police she froze in fear of what may happen next.
The fifth woman was accompanied by her toddler when she went to buy a product from the salon.
Stubberfield asked her out on a date, which she declined. He then showed her a picture of his genitals before pulling down his trousers to expose himself.
After she left the shop, he called a few minutes later to ask her out again.
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In 2013, Stubberfield sexually assaulted a woman he met on a dating site, forcing himself upon her before she was able to get away.
Another victim encountered Stubberfield in 2021 where he raped her twice before asking her if she “fancied a Nando’s”.
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The CPS said the victims were aged between 16 and 27 at the time of the offences – all younger than Stubberfield.
Detective Inspector Marcus Hodges, senior investigating officer, welcomed the sentence.
He added: “My utmost thanks and praise are with the victims who not only had the courage to report the offences, but to support the police investigation and give evidence in court.
“Their strength and bravery is admirable, and I sincerely hope that they may find some closure and be able to start moving forward with their lives following this outcome.”
