A South Hams sex attacker subjected a terrified woman to a brutal rape attempt after watching a vile scene from a horror film on his phone.

Kevin Foale, of Lister Way, East Allington, near Kingsbridge, left his victim half-naked and covered in blood after knocking out her two front teeth during the attack in Torquay.

The 49-year-old was seen on CCTV lurking in doorways for three hours as he waited for a lone female to walk down The Terrace.

The footage showed him watching a rape scene from a horror film on his phone as he lay in wait.

Foale had copied the film onto his phone just four days before he carried out the attack in the early hours of Sunday, January 20, this year.

He imitated the action from the film by taking off his upper clothing during the attack.

His blood-stained shirt was found by police near the car park where he fled after leaving the woman injured on the ground.

He claimed to be acting as a Good Samaritan who came to the aid of a drunken woman who fell over in the street but the CCTV and forensic tests showed he was lying.

He had scouted the location a few days before and his car had been recorded cruising around the same area in the early hours of Sunday mornings on four previous occasions in the past three months.

The attempted rape had a traumatic effect on the victim, who is still suffering flashback and nightmares and scared to go out on her own.

Bodycam footage from the police who went to her aid on the night showed her sat on the floor in torn clothing, crying hysterically with blood streaming from her mouth.

Foale admitted attempted rape and will be sentenced next month.

He is facing a jail term with a starting guideline of ten years.

He was due to be sentenced at Exeter Crown Court but did not travel from Exeter prison because of a mix up over dates.

Mr Peter Coombe, prosecuting, said the victim was found by four pub workers who were on their way home at around 2.10am.

She was half-naked, covered in blood and whispering “help me”.

She told them a man had tried to rape her and she had kicked him off.

They helped her back into her jeans and called the police.

Foale had fled the scene but CCTV showed him returning to his Peugeot in a nearby car park and police traced him from his number plate.

They found his bloodstained shirt hidden under a rock near the car park.

He claimed he had gone to Torquay to fish in Beacon Cove and had come across the injured woman on his way home, but he could not explain how her jeans had been pulled off her with such force that the button broke.

Mr Laws said the attack had been pre-planned and may have been mimicking the actions on the rape film which he had recorded onto his phone.

He said: “The CCTV showed him repeatedly circling the area for three hours.

“It is quite plain he was waiting until a victim came along.

“There was clear planning, not just on the night but in the weeks leading up to it, when he was not fishing; he was staking out the area.”

The victim’s impact statement said: “I am no longer the same person.

“Every day I wake up and look in the mirror and see I am missing my front teeth.

“I have lost a lot of confidence and it has affected my mental health.”

Mr Simon Burns, defending, will offer mitigation when the case returns for sentence.

He told an earlier hearing that Foale has no previous convictions but had been suffering from depression at the time of the attack.

Judge Evans remanded Foale into custody in his absence.