This is the official Humberside Police news release from yesterday. Even they manage to get the headline wrong
Nothing particularly different from the press report, though. But if you're an anorak like me looking for nuances, there are one or two, particularly the 'joint enterprise' thing, which isn't really evident from the press report.
‘Sexual predators’ found guilty after raping a woman in a taxihttps://www.humberside.police.uk/news/h ... in-a-taxi/Three men who preyed on and raped a lone woman after she got into what she believed to be a registered taxi after she left a night out with her friends in Hull City Centre last year, will now be sentenced after two have been found guilty of rape as part of joint enterprise and the other pleaded guilty to rape at an earlier hearing.
Bakhtullah Safi, 18, of Margaret Street, Hull and Habibullah Ahmadzai, 18 of Wellsted Street, Hull were both charged with rape following the incident on Sunday 30 July.
Kehan Safi, 26, of Wellington Lane, Hull was also charged with rape and pleaded guilty to the offence at an earlier hearing.
Just after midnight a woman was walking along Ferensway, Hull where a queue of cars were parked up. The woman got into one of the cars, believing this was a taxi, where she was raped.
Following the attack, a large scale investigation was launched with officers from our Protecting Vulnerable Persons Team and Major Crime Team undertaking hours of trawling and reviewing extensive amounts of CCTV footage in and around the Hull City Centre to identify the vehicle concerned, as well as numerous other enquiries in order to trace and identify the suspects using the car.
From the CCTV recovered, the footage captured the woman entering the vehicle and Bakhtullah driving away towards Hull Royal Infirmary. The vehicle was identified as being registered to Bakhtullah.
Further enquiries were conducted to trace the journey of the vehicle and it was discovered that Bakhtuallah travelled from Ferensway, before dropping the woman at an address in Hull where she was allowed to get out of the vehicle.
During the course of the journey, they continued to deceive the woman that it was a licenced taxi. Having raped the woman, alongside Habibullah and Kehan, Bakhtullah then requested a £20 fare for the journey which the woman refused and fled to safety.
Following these enquiries, Bakhtullah Safi was arrested on Saturday 5 August, and Kehan Safi and Habibullah Ahmadzai were arrested on Sunday 6 August. All three men were interviewed by detectives and were subsequently charged with rape.
Following an eight-day trial at Hull Crown Court, a jury returned a guilty today (Wednesday 14 February) for Bakhtullah Safi and Habibullah Ahmadzai. All three men have been remanded into custody and are due to be sentenced on Tuesday 2 April.
Officer in the case Detective Constable Ashley Webster said: “This was a truly disturbing case and I’m pleased these men are now behind bars and are being punished for this horrific attack.
“I cannot begin to put into words the bravery the woman has shown throughout the investigation and court proceedings, and I want to offer my sincerest thanks as she has helped take these abhorrent men off our streets.
“Kehan Safi, Bakhtullah Safi and Habibullah Ahmadzai are what I can only describe as ‘sexual predators’ who subjected a lone woman who had just been on a night out with friends, to a horrific and utterly traumatising ordeal for their own perverse needs.
“They have shown no remorse for their actions, putting the woman through the further torment of a trial by refusing to admit their crimes.
“We will never tolerate or condone any form of violence against women or girls across the Humberside force area and I hope today’s outcome provides reassurance in knowing that these men are unable to harm anybody else.
““We are committed to making our streets safer by preventing these types of crimes, investigating reported offences and pursuing perpetrators and bringing them to justice.
“To anyone who is or who may have been the victim of rape or sexual assault, I would urge you to please, come forward and report it to us.
“We will listen to you and we will do all we can to take action against those responsible and bring them to justice. By working closely with other organisations, charities, and agencies, we can also ensure you are offered the help and support that is needed following these types of offences.”
You can speak to independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously, or you can report directly through our 101 number, or 999 in an emergency.
Alternatively, you can contact the independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.