An Afghan asylum seeker who abducted a 12-year-old girl and filmed himself raping her has been jailed for 15 years. Ahmad Mulakhil, 23, was convicted of rape, child abduction, taking an indecent video and two counts of sexual assault at Warwick Crown Court last month. He admitted a second count of rape before the trial began.
The attack in Nuneaton, Warwickshire, last July triggered large-scale anti-asylum protests in the town. Protesters marched along the high street holding St George's cross and union flags, with some participants wearing Nazi imagery. Sentencing on Friday, Judge Kristina Montgomery KC said the victim had suffered significant and ongoing psychological harm.
“Your victim was particularly vulnerable due to her personal circumstances,” the judge said. CCTV showed Mulakhil asking the girl her age; she replied 19, which the judge described as “an obvious lie.” The jury concluded Mulakhil knew she was under 16. After the assault, the girl was left alone in a park in the dark, distressed and hypervigilant.
Mulakhil, who arrived in the UK on a small boat four months before the offence, claimed the girl initiated the encounter and that he believed she was 19. His defence lawyer said he fled Afghanistan after coming under Taliban scrutiny. Mulakhil will serve an additional 12 months on licence after his prison term.
The victim gave evidence that Mulakhil laughed during the attack. A second Afghan asylum seeker, Mohammad Kabir, was acquitted of charges including attempted child abduction.
