Four individuals have been found guilty of grooming and raping a 17-year-old girl in Bristol. The group, identified as Mehrab Safi, 21, Salman Habibkheil and Awal Ahmadzai, both 19, and a 17-year-old boy who cannot be named, attacked the victim at a house in November last year.
Safi, Ahmadzai, and Habibkheil fled the UK in December, concealing themselves in the back of a lorry. They were later apprehended by French authorities in Calais. The defendants, along with the 17-year-old boy, had denied the charges, claiming the encounter was consensual. However, a jury at Bristol Crown Court found them guilty of grooming and rape on Friday.
The victim met Safi while Christmas shopping with a friend in the city center. Safi initially attempted to lure the girls to his home by offering drugs and a place to charge their phones, but they declined. Safi and the victim subsequently exchanged social media details, and he began messaging her on Snapchat, where he requested nude photos.
Four days later, Safi and Habibkheil arranged for a taxi to transport the girl from her home in Somerset to an industrial estate in Bristol. She was then taken to Safi's residence, where the men allegedly gave her alcohol to incapacitate her before proceeding to rape her. The victim reported being sexually assaulted and raped by the four men over several hours.
During the trial, jurors viewed a video of the victim's police interview, in which she stated she did not want to have sex with Safi at the time of the assault, but he proceeded anyway. Habibkheil then raped her, followed by Ahmadzai and the 17-year-old boy. The victim told officers she felt unsafe and only wanted to go home. She also indicated she may have been asleep during some of the assaults.
The victim's mother raised the alarm when she did not return home. Police traced her to a property in the St Werburghs area of Bristol. Officers arrested the teenage boy at the door, while the three older men fled as police arrived.
Safi faced charges including two counts of rape and arranging or facilitating the travel of a female with a view to exploitation. Habibkheil was charged with one count of rape and a similar facilitation charge. Ahmadzai was charged with one count of rape and one count of sexual assault. The 17-year-old boy was charged with one count of rape.
All four individuals are scheduled to be sentenced at Bristol Crown Court on Tuesday, October 6.