Two brothers arrested in Wembley for raping a woman in her home after asking to use the toilet have been jailed for 12 years.

Isleworth Crown Court heard Ovidiu Mamaliga, 30, and Andrei Mamaliga, 28, both of no fixed address, had befriended the victim, a woman in her 40s, by starting a conversation with her outside her home in North Action on the morning of May 10.

They left but then came back later in the morning and chatted again.

A police spokesman said: “Upon going back into her home, one of the brothers followed the victim inside and asked if he could use the toilet. She declined, and she was then attacked.

“She was tied up with shoelaces the brothers had brought with them, undressed and raped. They then made off with cash, jewellery and mobile phones.”

Police who examined the scene later on found DNA profiles found that matched the two brothers.

CCTV footage, mobile phone signals and Oyster card records also showed the brothers near the scene at the time.

Both brothers were arrested in the Wembley area on June 6 but denied the offence.

On October 25 they were found guilty of rape, sexual assault, attempted rape, actual bodily harm and theft and the ywere jailed on December 1 to 12 years with a further eight years to be served on license.

The court heard that the brothers, both Romanian nationals, had been released from prison in France in 2016 after serving a sentence for rape.

Applications for them both to be deported at the end of the sentences have been made.

Detective Inspector Tim Desai, who led the investigation, said: “This was a horrific sex attack committed by two brothers who pose a huge danger to women and should be behind bars.

“The victim has been left traumatised by what happened, and I praise her bravery in first reporting the attack and then coming face-to-face with her attackers and testifying against them to ensure their convictions. There may well be other victims of these two men who for whatever reason did not report the crime to police at the time. We would urge you to contact police.”

If you were a victim of the Mamaliga brothers please contact police via 101, or Crimestoppers on 0800 555 11.