Not as rare as they'd like us to believe

This is more Julia's territory than mine, she's certainly found enough cases of women crying wolf over sexual assault and rape.

BBC.

Detectives investigating a report of a serious sexual assault in Kent have called off their hunt for suspected kidnappers and a rapist.

The inquiry was set up after a 20-year-old woman told police two men forced her into the back of a car in Deal and sexually assaulted her on 6 February.

Police now say they are satisfied the incident, in the Kingsdown area, did not happen as reported.

Chief Insp Ken Elmes said residents need no longer worry about the attack.

"I am relieved that the hunt for suspected kidnappers and a rapist can be closed," he said.

"Officers are still going to be working to establish what was behind the allegation, but they are not investigating a kidnap or rape."

OK no arrests, no careers blighted, no lives destroyed, yet it remains obvious that there is a problem in the system that would allow an anonymous "victim" to make accusations ending up wasting police time up and into the courts system against a known defendant. If the victim gets anonymity, then the accused should also be accorded the same privilege, at least until a guilty verdict. Yet often enough the accuser having lied walks away with a slap on the wrist whilst some poor guys life lies in ruins around him, proven innocent in the eyes of the law and yet often ostracised afterwards on the "there's no smoke without fire" mentality of some people. Plus having his DNA permanently on record and all his details permanently in the legal system. You'd have thought the equalities act might have corrected this imbalance in the system, though of course being a Labour act of Parliament pushed forward by Harriet (I hate men) Harman no such thing was done. The act was more about doing white men down than protecting the rights of all.
So unless the law is changed giving protection to all equally, men are at a terrible disadvantage to those women out there who can accuse them of a sexual crime and remain anonymous until (assuming they are) caught out. Sexual crimes such as rape are a terrible and terrifying ordeal for women, the devastation to their lives can cause problems lasting a lifetime, those that cheapen this crime by making false claims do the real victims no favours. Perhaps if the penalty for false accusation was the same as for a genuine sex offender they'd think twice, but until that happens, mens lives are being ruined and often enough the accuser walks away scot free.