A transgender woman who concealed her biological sex before engaging in sexual activity with a man has been jailed for 21 months after a jury found she had deceived him about being female. Ciara Watkin, 21, from Thornaby in Stockton-on-Tees, was convicted at Durham Crown Court of sexual assault. The court heard that her victim would not have consented to sexual contact had he known she was biologically male.

Watkin met the man through Snapchat when both were 18. Using a female cartoon avatar as her profile image, she presented herself entirely as a woman. When they met in person, the victim believed she was female, and the two became intimate. During the encounter, Watkin reportedly claimed to be on her period to avoid any contact that might reveal her biological sex. She later admitted to the man that she had been born male, which led him to file a police complaint.

The victim told officers that the revelation left him feeling “physically sick” and that he would never have met her had he known the truth. He described himself as a heterosexual man who felt “ashamed and humiliated” after being “tricked” into sexual contact. In a statement to the court, the man said the deception had a lasting emotional toll. He spoke of being ridiculed online after the case came to light and said the experience had made him feel as though his masculinity had been “violated.” Recorder Peter Makepeace KC, sentencing, said Watkin’s actions were a “complete betrayal” of trust. “You told deliberate lies,” he said, “and I am certain your victim believed, from beginning to end, that you were a biological female.”

The court heard that Watkin had identified as female since childhood and had lived as a woman for years, though she had not undergone medical or surgical transition. Her defence argued that her actions stemmed from deep personal shame and lifelong struggles with gender dysphoria, rather than malice. Defence barrister Victoria Lamballe told the court that Watkin grew up in a neglected household with parents who were drug addicts. She said her client had been “bullied daily” for her gender identity and had created a “façade” to cope with internal distress.

“This was not an act of cruelty,” Ms Lamballe said. “It was an act of desperation from someone who wanted to be accepted as she sees herself.”

The judge, however, said the deception went far beyond self-protection. “You knew full well that he would not have consented had he known your biological sex,” Recorder Makepeace told Watkin. He added that she had shown “no remorse or empathy” during the trial, describing her behaviour in court as “flippant and indifferent.” He also criticised online commentators who mocked the victim, saying they had “deliberately used unflattering images” of Watkin to question his account, despite other photos showing she could appear convincingly female.

Watkin will serve her sentence in a male prison, though the court heard that special measures would be in place for her protection. She was also placed on the sex offenders register for 10 years and made subject to a lifetime restraining order preventing contact with the victim. Recorder Makepeace said Watkin posed a “significant risk” of similar offences in the future, noting that her pursuit of sexual encounters with heterosexual men involved a pattern of deception.

After the sentencing, Detective Constable Martin Scotson of Cleveland Police said the outcome should reassure victims of sexual deception that such offences are taken seriously.

“Watkin purposely hid her biological sex to engage in sexual activity,” he said. “Had the victim known the truth, he would not have consented. I hope this verdict helps him begin to move on.”

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