https://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/...le-rape-of-defenceless-woman/a1640923927.html
A Syrian refugee was today jailed for three years for the “deplorable” rape of a vulnerable woman.
Ahmad Alsbaihi (22), of Ard Na Va Road, off the Falls Road in west Belfast, was told he will spend a further three years on supervised licence on his release from prison after he pleaded guilty to a single count of rape.
Belfast Crown Court heard Alsbaihi and another male were at a city centre nightclub in the early hours of June 22, 2022, when they met the female victim and invited her back to a house for a party.
Prosecution barrister Rosemary Walsh said a female witness observed the two men with the woman and had “concerns about her vulnerability through her intoxication”.
She said she asked the victim if she knew the men and she replied she didn't. The witness decided to accompany her to the party and en route to the house, the men stopped the taxi to collect a bottle of vodka.
At around 5 am, the witness said she came out of a bedroom and saw Alshaihi “having sex” with the victim “whose eyes were closed and she was completely asleep”.
The court was told that following the rape, the two men redressed the victim and removed her from the living room floor and put her on the sofa.
When the witness confronted the defendant, Alsbaihi claimed the victim had consented to sex when she was awake before falling asleep.
Police and an ambulance were called and while being tended to by paramedics the victim woke up, the court heard, but she had no idea what had happened to her.
The defendant was subsequently arrested by police but denied raping the woman and made the case that she had consented to sex.
The court heard the victim's blood initially gave a reading of 178 micrograms of alcohol in 100 millilitres of blood, however, a back count suggested a reading of between 315-525 micrograms of alcohol with an average of 425 micrograms of alcohol in 100 millilitres of blood.
In a statement to the court, the victim described the effects the rape had on her physicality, her relationships, the trauma she has endured and the ongoing fear she feels.
In a pre-sentence report, the defendant told a probation officer that he felt “disgusted” at what he had done and the victim had not consented to having sexual intercourse with him.
Defence counsel Charles MacCreanor KC said Alsbaihi, who has no previous criminal record, has now expressed his remorse and regret over the rape.
He said the defendant presented as an immature male who was 20 at the time of the rape. The senior counsel added he arrived in Northern Ireland in 2017 with his mother and brother after fleeing war-ravaged Syria via Jordan and had ‘suffered poor mental health before his offending over a number of years”.
Passing the six-year determinate custodial sentence, Judge Mark McGarrity said: “It must been obvious to the defendant given the victim's intoxication that she was entirely helpless and defenceless.
“The evidence reveals that she was so incapacitated that she had no awareness of what had been inflicted upon her.
“She was, I consider, highly vulnerable to the defendant's deplorable actions. He nonetheless displayed a callous and wicked disregard for her.
“I applaud her bravery and I believe this attack has had a profound effect upon her.
“I also applaud the resilience of the witness. She deserves praise for playing her part in making sure the victim in this case got justice.”
A Syrian refugee was today jailed for three years for the “deplorable” rape of a vulnerable woman.
Ahmad Alsbaihi (22), of Ard Na Va Road, off the Falls Road in west Belfast, was told he will spend a further three years on supervised licence on his release from prison after he pleaded guilty to a single count of rape.
Belfast Crown Court heard Alsbaihi and another male were at a city centre nightclub in the early hours of June 22, 2022, when they met the female victim and invited her back to a house for a party.
Prosecution barrister Rosemary Walsh said a female witness observed the two men with the woman and had “concerns about her vulnerability through her intoxication”.
She said she asked the victim if she knew the men and she replied she didn't. The witness decided to accompany her to the party and en route to the house, the men stopped the taxi to collect a bottle of vodka.
At around 5 am, the witness said she came out of a bedroom and saw Alshaihi “having sex” with the victim “whose eyes were closed and she was completely asleep”.
The court was told that following the rape, the two men redressed the victim and removed her from the living room floor and put her on the sofa.
When the witness confronted the defendant, Alsbaihi claimed the victim had consented to sex when she was awake before falling asleep.
Police and an ambulance were called and while being tended to by paramedics the victim woke up, the court heard, but she had no idea what had happened to her.
The defendant was subsequently arrested by police but denied raping the woman and made the case that she had consented to sex.
The court heard the victim's blood initially gave a reading of 178 micrograms of alcohol in 100 millilitres of blood, however, a back count suggested a reading of between 315-525 micrograms of alcohol with an average of 425 micrograms of alcohol in 100 millilitres of blood.
In a statement to the court, the victim described the effects the rape had on her physicality, her relationships, the trauma she has endured and the ongoing fear she feels.
In a pre-sentence report, the defendant told a probation officer that he felt “disgusted” at what he had done and the victim had not consented to having sexual intercourse with him.
Defence counsel Charles MacCreanor KC said Alsbaihi, who has no previous criminal record, has now expressed his remorse and regret over the rape.
He said the defendant presented as an immature male who was 20 at the time of the rape. The senior counsel added he arrived in Northern Ireland in 2017 with his mother and brother after fleeing war-ravaged Syria via Jordan and had ‘suffered poor mental health before his offending over a number of years”.
Passing the six-year determinate custodial sentence, Judge Mark McGarrity said: “It must been obvious to the defendant given the victim's intoxication that she was entirely helpless and defenceless.
“The evidence reveals that she was so incapacitated that she had no awareness of what had been inflicted upon her.
“She was, I consider, highly vulnerable to the defendant's deplorable actions. He nonetheless displayed a callous and wicked disregard for her.
“I applaud her bravery and I believe this attack has had a profound effect upon her.
“I also applaud the resilience of the witness. She deserves praise for playing her part in making sure the victim in this case got justice.”
