A vile predator who filmed a woman being raped on Brighton beach by his two accomplices was in the United Kingdom in an attempt to avoid imprisonment after being convicted of murder in Egypt, prosecutors have stated.
Guilty Verdicts for Brutal Attack
Karin Al-Danasurt, aged 20, was found guilty of four counts of rape as a secondary party by encouraging and filming the horrific assault in October last year. The victim was targeted by the men as she was "staggering in the street" and "incapacitated" in the early hours of October 4, Hove Crown Court heard. She reported hearing laughter during the attack.
Al-Danasurt was convicted in a trial alongside Ibrahim Alshafe, 25, and Iranian Abdulla Ahmadi, 26, who were each found guilty of two counts of rape. All three arrived in the UK after crossing the English Channel by boat and had pending decisions on their asylum claims.
Murder Conviction Emerges
Details of Al-Danasurt's alleged past crimes surfaced at a plea hearing in November last year, before the trial. However, the judge withdrew the evidence after his defence team contested the conviction. At the time, prosecutors informed the court that Al-Danasurt had been convicted of murder in his absence in Egypt, adding that the basis of his asylum claim was that he fled the country to "evade a lengthy custodial sentence."
His defence barrister countered that it was actually his brother who had the murder conviction, not him. They also noted that the UK Government’s assessment of Egypt is that a person openly critical of the government is likely to be at risk of serious harm. Consequently, the evidence was not heard by jurors during the trial due to the dispute.
Ongoing Inquiries and Potential Deportation
On Thursday, prosecutor Hanna Llewellyn-Waters KC told the court there were "ongoing inquiries at a very senior level" about Al-Danasurt's crimes abroad. She added that he had also received a caution in the UK for criminal damage in April last year but said she was "not in a position" to provide further details.
She also informed Judge Christine Henson KC that it was "not a foregone conclusion that these defendants will be deported," adding "I am not the Home Office" when asked about reports to determine whether the rapists meet the threshold for extended sentences.
In response to the verdicts, border security and asylum minister Alex Norris stated: "Once sentencing has taken place, we will move to deport them off British soil."
Background of the Attack
At the time of the attack, all three defendants knew each other and were living at Home Office-approved hotel accommodation for asylum seekers in Lower Beeding near Horsham, West Sussex. Al-Danasurt was born in Egypt and attended school there until around the age of 11, leaving Egypt to come to the UK in June 2022.
