A Bangladeshi migrant accused of raping a drunk 17-year-old after he picked her up in his taxi is a “sexual predator”, a court has heard.
Katar Shahin was sentenced at Swansea Crown Court to 10 years in prison for raping the drunk teenager, whom the taxi driver “targeted” for assault after noticing her heavily under the influence of alcohol, according to the judge.
Jurors heard that, in the early hours of June 4, he spotted the girl walking in Swansea’s city centre — where she had consumed alcohol, cannabis, and a sleeping tablet on a night out with friends — and pulled up beside her in his taxi, asking if she needed a ride.
When the teenager, who stated during the trial that she only got into the vehicle because she believed taxis are all fitted with CCTV for passengers’ safety, told Shahin she had no money, he said he would give her a lift for free.
Instead, the 40-year-old drove first to McDonald’s, where he bought the girl a drink, and food for himself, and then to his house, where he told the teenager he needed to make a quick stop before driving her home.
Shahid insisted he could not leave the girl alone in his taxi, so she agreed to go into the house with him, where he then proceeded to try and ply her with alcohol, the court heard.
When she refused, the Bangladeshi tried to kiss and fondle the 17-year-old, who resisted his advances but passed out after feeling drowsy as a result of her intoxication.
The next thing the girl remembered, she said at trial, was waking up naked and seeing a used condom on the floor, before Shahin dropped her off outside a pub in Swansea.
She contacted police the following day, telling them she feared the taxi driver could have raped her, but that she was not sure.
After a police search of Shahin’s house turned up a used condom, the married migrant claimed he had masturbated into it after driving the girl home.
However, with tests revealing the victim’s DNA on the condom, Shahin then changed his story, alleging that the teenager was a prostitute whom he paid £20 for sex.
Judge Geraint Walters described this claim as a “scandalous assertion which the jury found to be a complete lie”.
He told the court: “It seems to me you probably picked-up this girl because you observed she appeared to be heavily under the influence of alcohol – to an extent she was targeted.
“By the time you drove to McDonald’s that night you had decided to see if you could have sex with her. By the time you raped her, you knew she was under the influence of alcohol and drugs.”
Defending Shahin, barrister Robin Rouch said there had been no concerns over his client’s behaviour prior to the rape, adding that the immigrant had been in employment since arriving in Britain from Bangladesh, where he regularly sends money to support his wife and family.
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