Afghan asylum seeker jailed for abducting and raping 12-year-old

An Afghan asylum seeker has been jailed for 15 years after abducting and raping a 12-year-old girl in Nuneaton.

Ahmad Mulakhil was found guilty of rape and two counts of sexual assault following a trial last month, having already admitted a further rape charge.

He was also convicted of child abduction and taking an indecent video of the girl by the jury at Warwick Crown Court.

The court heard that Mulakhil arrived in the UK four months before committing the offences.

He had made an immigration application linked to "problems" he had experienced in Afghanistan.

The 23-year-old told the court he believed his victim to be 19 years old, and said she initiated a sexual encounter on 22 July last year.

But prosecutor Daniel Oscroft said Mulakhil's attempts to blame his victim were "stomach-churning" and "pretty revolting".

The victim, who cannot be named, said she was approached in a Nuneaton park by Mulakhil after playing on the swings. She said she had told her attacker to stop and that he was laughing while attacking her.

Sentencing Mulakhil, Judge Kristina Montgomery KC said the victim continues to suffer trauma responses and medical issues associated with the attack.

"Your victim was particularly vulnerable due to her personal circumstances and she has suffered significant and ongoing psychological harm," the judge said, adding that Mulakhil had "targeted" the girl.

She also said that the girl saying she was 19 was an "obvious" lie, with CCTV showing that "your reaction was incredulous and the jury's verdict leaves no doubt that you knew she was aged under 16".

"(After the attack), you left the area together but when you parted company, she was left alone in a park in the darkness for some time," the judge said.

"She was distressed, she was hypervigilant. Looking over her shoulder and into the woodland to see whether you were still in the area.

"She gave an immediate account of your sexual assault upon her. She was thereafter subjected to a medical examination and questioning by the police and latterly as you contested her allegations, cross examination in the court."

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In addition to jailing Mulakhil, she sentenced him to an extra 12 months on license to follow his prison sentence.

The judge told Mulakhil the jail term of 15 years was long enough to automatically render him liable for deportation.

He was also ordered to register as a sex offender for life and made the subject of an indefinite sexual harm prevention order and a restraining order.

Mulakhil faced trial alongside Muhammad Kabir, also an Afghan asylum seeker, who was acquitted of charges of intentional strangulation, attempted child abduction and committing an offence with intent to commit a sexual offence.

The victim told the trial that she was approached in a park by both defendants.

The attack triggered large-scale anti-immigration protests in the town last summer. People also gathered outside the courthouse as the sentence was handed down and draped a banner saying "Stop the invasion, end immigration" over railings leading to the court.

(c) Sky News 2026: Afghan asylum seeker jailed for abducting and raping 12-year-old