Asylum seekers ‘gang-raped vulnerable woman on beach as she made her way home from night out, with one filming ordeal’, trial told
Asylum seekers ‘gang-raped vulnerable woman on beach as she made her way home from night out, with one filming ordeal’, court informed
A court has heard that three asylum seekers assaulted a woman who was left severely injured and unconscious on a secluded stretch of Brighton beach, with one of them recording the incident. The victim, whose identity has not been disclosed, was described as being in a highly vulnerable state during the attack.
The alleged perpetrators dragged her to a quiet area of the beach, where they alternated in raping her. During the assault, one individual was captured on camera laughing and making gestures toward the camera, indicating a sense of mockery and enjoyment.
Prosecution details the victim’s condition
Opening the case, Hanna Llewellyn-Waters, the prosecutor, stated that the woman was ‘effectively incapacitated’ after separating from her companion during the early hours of October 4 last year. She was found unable to stand, having spent several hours consuming alcohol with friends prior to the incident.
‘These defendants didn’t just take advantage of her; they treated her as a target for their pleasure. Instead of offering assistance, they chose to exploit her, viewing her as an object for their gratification,’ Llewellyn-Waters explained.
The woman recalled hearing men laughing above her while another was physically abusing her. She described feeling a flash of light in her face, akin to a camera’s flash, and hearing a foreign voice taunting her with phrases like ‘dirty bitch.’
Charges and alleged motives
Two of the three accused are facing charges of physical rape, while the third is accused of four counts of rape by instigating the attacks. This defendant is also alleged to have shared intimate footage of the events. Karin Al-Danasurt, 20, denies the claim that she recorded the woman during the assault.
The three individuals, including Iranian Abdulla Amih Ahmadi, 26, and Egyptian Ibrahim Alshafe, 25, are residents of Cisswood House Hotel in Horsham, a Home Office-approved hostel for asylum seekers and those appealing their immigration status. The prosecution highlighted that they moved the victim away from the busy main road to a more secluded part of the beach.
During the attack, the woman may have been given drugs at the Horizon nightclub earlier in the evening, though she declined them. The case includes a clip from Al-Danasurt’s phone showing Ahmadi covering his face, possibly to hide his identity. Another pixelated video, shared by police for modesty, captures Alshafe looking directly at the camera, smiling, and sticking his tongue out.
Ahmadi fled the Cisswood Hotel the day after the incident, relocating to Crewe without Home Office approval. He was later arrested by police a week later. The trial continues as jurors weigh the evidence presented.