A serial rapist has admitted raping and beating a woman in Victoria Park hours before he married his pregnant fiancée.

Derry MCCann, 28, from Hackney, targeted his victim, who is in her 20s, as she walked home after an evening out with friends near Victoria Park on January 12 around 11pm.

As she tried to pass him he grabbed her and pulled her towards some benches where he threatened to hurt her if she fought back before beating and raping her in a ‘drawn out attack’.

When her ordeal was over MCCann took photos of his victim telling her ‘she was lucky’ that he did not video the attack before he fled with her phone.

Hours later he married his pregnant fiancé.

Detectives investigating the attack identified McCann as the suspect based on a description the victim provided.

When he was arrested on January 18 he and refused to answer any questions. But he was picked out by his victim in an identity parade.

Detectives believe that he had been following another woman immediately before the rape, but he had lost track of her so picked out his McCann was identified as the suspect based on a description the victim provided. He was arrested on Wednesday, 18 January and refused to answer any questions. The victim, however, bravely identified McCann in an identity parade.

Detectives believe that McCann had been following another woman immediately before the rape, but he had lost track so stalked his eventual victim instead.

Today at Snaresbrook Crown Court he pleaded guilty to three counts of rape, one count of assault by penetration and one court of robbery.

He had only recently been freed from jail after spending several years behind bars for an attack in 2006. McCann, then 18, had been jailed for life but was freed after his minimum term of nine years was cut at an appeal.

He will be sentenced on April 28 after a psychiatric report is completed.

Det Insp Lee Davison from the Met’s sexual offences, exploitation and child abuse command said: “This man is a vicious predator and an extreme danger to woman.

“He preyed on his victim and set out to degrade her physically and psychologically.

“No one should have to endure what she was forced to go through and I want to formally pay tribute to her courage and determination. It is through her bravery we have been able to bring McCann to justice.”