Locations
Highbury Vale, Nottingham, NG6
Description
A rapist who carried a 15-year-old girl into a bedroom against her will and subjected her to a violent sexual assault has been on the run for nearly two years, with police unaware of his location.
Nottingham Crown Court held the hearing without Aland Ahmed, 22, after he fled the country and skipped bail. His victim read an emotional impact statement detailing the attack's lasting effects, as reported by Nottingham Live.
In 2022, Ahmed, then 19, made unwanted advances toward the teenager at a flat in Nottingham. She resisted, but he carried her into the bedroom and raped her for five to ten minutes without a condom. He stopped only when disturbed by someone entering the room, who saw the girl crying hysterically.
The victim developed complex PTSD, turned to drugs and alcohol to cope, and saw her family relationships break down, leading to supported accommodation. In her statement, she described being unable to sleep.
Ahmed, of Highbury Road, was convicted in absentia of one count of rape and sentenced to nine years. He has been missing for 21 months and was placed on the sex offender register for life. Upon arrest, he will serve two-thirds of the sentence.
Judge Steven Coupland said:
“He was 19 at the time and is still only 23 now and the delay in this case is entirely down to him because of his initial denials of the offence and then him absenting himself. He chose not to attend the court, breached his bail and hasn’t been seen for some 21 months. She had only turned 15 and it is plain she did not want to have sex with him as she physically resisted him.
“As a result of this he physically carried her into a bedroom where, despite her protestations he raped her for some five to ten minutes without using a condom. He only stopped when someone else in the flat disturbed them and she was noticed to be crying hysterically.
“She then had to relive what happened in a video interview and then at the trial when his denials had to be put to her, despite him not attending or being here for that trial.
“I have read her victim impact statement in which she says as a result of what happened she turned to drugs and drink which ruined her relationship with her family and led to her now living in supported accommodation. She now suffers from complex PTSD, has trouble trusting people and is unable to sleep. It is clear there is severe psychological harm in this case.”
Prosecutor Nick Corsellis KC said the teenager and Ahmed, of Highbury Vale, were in the flat where he “made advances on her” which she tried to fight off. He added:
“She resisted him but he carried her into a bedroom where she was forcefully raped and his DNA was found in her underwear.
“After being charged and appearing at the magistrates' court he then absented himself and is believed to be out of the country. As a result he did not attend his trial, there is no pre-sentence report and very little is known about him. In her victim impact statement she talks of abusing drugs and drink as a result of what happened and being ostracised by her family although she is improving over time.”