On March 6, a headline in the Andover Advertiser announced: “Man arrested after attempting to kidnap woman in Andover.” At 5:32 p.m. on March 2, a man drove a large white van into a woman in her 50s, jumped out, and tried to drag her into the vehicle. The woman was struck from behind.
The woman managed to fend off her attacker, who was named by police as 28-year-old Sean Haverty of Newquay, England. Haverty was charged with kidnapping with intent to commit sexual assault, assault causing bodily harm, and non-fatal strangulation. The woman was taken to the hospital with injuries to her face, knee, and wrist.
On August 26, however, the Telegraph published an update to the story. “A transgender woman drove a van into a lone woman during a ‘chilling’ attempt to kidnap her, a court heard.” Haverty was identified as Safiya Anna Haverty, and the press outlet used “she/her” pronouns to describe the would-be rapist.
At the beginning of the trial, Judge Rufus Taylor informed the jury that Haverty had changed his name and is “biologically male and presenting as a woman in court.” Natalie Cheesman of the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) described Haverty’s crime: “This was a chilling attack on a complete stranger. Haverty drove to Hampshire before striking a lone woman with a van, dragging her towards the vehicle and strangling her.”
Once again, the press seemed confused as to whether to present Haverty as a man or a woman. Was he Sean, or Safiya? Was the crime an incident of woman-on-woman violence, or a male crime of violence and attempted sexual assault? (The BBC chose a middle route, noting the name change but avoiding pronouns altogether.)
Reduxx, which also posted a 2023 photo of Haverty as a bearded man who is clearly not attempting to “present” as female, noted that “public records and archived online profiles show that Haverty had previously presented exclusively as a man” and that a “Backstage acting profile for Haverty lists him as a male model from Newquay, Cornwall, and photographs on the page appear to match images he had previously used across his social media accounts.” Haverty appears to have begun identifying as a woman after his arrest.
The jury at the Winchester Crown Court found Haverty guilty of kidnapping, intentional strangulation, assault occasioning actual bodily harm, perverting the course of justice, and dangerous driving.
“Working closely with Hampshire and Isle of Wight Constabulary, CPS prosecutors built a strong case using forensic and [automatic number plate recognition] evidence, mobile phone data and eyewitnesses to prove Haverty was responsible,” stated Cheesman. “We hope these convictions provide some reassurance to the victim that Haverty has been brought to justice.”