Man jailed for violent indecent assault on woman he picked up from Paceville
The incident happened 10 years ago
A Syrian man living in Mosta was sentenced to 12 months in prison after being found guilty of violent indecent assault and causing slight injuries to a woman 10 years ago.
The court of magistrates ruled that Ahmad Sheikh Ahmad, 38, had also offended public morals in a public place but acquitted him of rape and holding the victim against her will.
The incident occurred in the early hours of March 8, 2015, when the Norwegian woman, who was then aged 22, wanted to return home from Paceville because she was feeling tired and unwell. Her friends initially called their landlord for a lift home but then they met a Syrian friend called “Jimmy” who said his brother, the accused, was heading to Mosta too and could give her a lift.
The woman sat in the back seat of the car while the accused drove and another brother sat in front.
After dropping off the brother, they proceeded towards Mosta but passed through an isolated area that the woman did not recognise. At one point, the accused allegedly stopped the car, moved to the back seat, pulled down part of her clothing and attempted to rape her.
She eventually managed to escape the vehicle and he drove away leaving her there. She flagged a car that stopped to assist her and drove her home. In court, the passer-by testified that the woman was sobbing continuously and in distress.
She filed a police report the next day.
Her friends called “Jimmy”, whose real name is Mohammed Sheikh Ahmad, to tell him what happened and he confronted his brother who denied the incident.
Court expert Dr Marisa Cassar told the court that there were no traces of the accused’s DNA on the victim’s clothes.
Dr Mario Scerri testified that the victim sustained minor injuries caused by “blunt trauma” possibly after a fall but injuries on her neck “could have been grip marks”.
Ahmad denied the allegations, claiming the woman felt ill and said she wanted to get out of the car. He told the court that she fell to the ground and when he went to pick her up she told him not to touch her, so he left her there and drove away.
The court noted Ahmad’s criminal record including a 2012 conviction for harassment.
He was sentenced to 12 months in prison and fined €2,500. A three-year protection order was issued in favour of the victim.
Magistrate Caroline Farrugia Frendo presided over the court.