Three men have been convicted of repeatedly raping a woman on Brighton beach in what a judge described as a “cynical, predatory and callous” attack. The victim became separated from her friends in the early hours of 4 October last year and was targeted while incapacitated, Hove Crown Court heard.
Ibrahim Alshafe, 25, an Egyptian national, and Abdulla Ahmadi, 26, an Iranian national, were found guilty of two counts of rape. Karin Al-Danasurt, 20, also Egyptian, was convicted of four counts of rape as a secondary party for encouraging and filming the attack. All three are seeking asylum in the UK.
Prosecutor Hanna Llewellyn-Waters KC told jurors: “To these defendants, the complainant was meat. They wanted sex and that could be achieved by being with someone who was in no state to resist them.” The court saw footage of Alshafe smiling and sticking out his tongue during the assault.
The men, who lived at a Home Office-approved hotel for asylum seekers near Horsham, West Sussex, claimed the encounter was consensual. Al-Danasurt said he filmed the attack to stop it. The victim said: “It wasn’t consensual… they are evil and have ruined my life.”
After the attack, the men returned to their hotel by bus and held a barbecue while the victim awaited medical examination. Ahmadi left the hotel without authorisation and was arrested later in Crewe. Border Security Minister Alex Norris said the Home Office would seek to deport the men after sentencing.
