A woman who falsely accused a taxi driver of raping her has been jailed for three years, with a judge saying she showed “blatant disregard” for the driver and the justice system. Laura Hood, 27, from Stockport, claimed that Haroon Yousaf, 29, attacked her in the back of his cab after a night out in January 2017.
However, Manchester Minshull Street Crown Court heard that the taxi’s tracker device proved she had lied about the attack. Hood denied perverting the course of justice but was convicted following a trial.
Sentencing her, Judge Julie Warburton said: “What you did strikes at the very heart of criminal justice. It has a tendency to damage the public perception of justice and can impact on the administration of justice in rape cases generally.” The judge noted that Mr Yousaf was arrested in handcuffs in front of fellow taxi drivers, interviewed by police, and required to provide intimate samples, which he found “harrowing”.
Hood had told the court she was innocent because she had not knowingly lied, instead claiming a false belief of “something so clear in my head”. But a consultant forensic psychiatrist concluded there was no medical or psychiatric explanation for her belief.
Thomas McKail, defending, said Hood fulfilled the criteria for mild depression and had previously resorted to alcohol and drugs as a coping mechanism. Judge Warburton said she had to balance those mitigating factors against the impact on two innocent men, referring to both Mr Yousaf and another man previously affected by Hood’s actions.
