A Kurdish migrant has been jailed for seven years after raping a woman and later telling her he “didn’t actually want to do this but couldn’t stop” himself.
Mehmet Ogur, 27, who had arrived in Britain on a small boat weeks before the attack, forced himself on the woman last January while living at a migrant hotel in Tamworth. The victim met Ogur via a social media app, and the assault occurred after consensual cuddling and kissing during a meeting in a secluded park near the town centre.
Ogur was convicted of rape and attempted rape at Stafford Crown Court last summer. He denied wrongdoing during his trial and claimed that messages he sent to the victim afterward — including apparent admissions of guilt — had been mistranslated by Google Translate.
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In one of the messages, the court heard, Ogur wrote: “I am really sorry, I didn’t actually want to do this but I couldn’t stop myself.” Another read: “I am sorry for trying to force you to have sex.” The prosecution described these messages as “full and complete admissions” of the offences.
Impact on Victim
The victim, whose identity is protected, read a statement to the court describing the lasting trauma caused by the attack. “I’m a survivor of rape by Mehmet Ogur. He completely destroyed me,” she said. “No words can explain what he put me through. The truth is I don’t think I’ll ever get through it.” She added that she hoped her testimony would give courage to other survivors: “I want to fight for myself and every single other girl that’s too scared to speak up.”
Passing sentence, Judge John Edwards told Ogur that the assault had caused “immense harm.” He added that Ogur’s continued stay in the United Kingdom would be a matter for immigration authorities, not the court.
The judge acknowledged that Ogur, a trained veterinary technician, was “plainly a man of intelligence” who had witnessed extreme violence in Turkey before being rescued at sea. In mitigation, defence counsel Joseph McKenna said Ogur suffered from anxiety and depression due to difficult circumstances as a Kurd in Turkey.
Prosecution Statement
Sachan Gautam, senior crown prosecutor in the Crown Prosecution Service West Midlands specialist rape and serious sexual offences unit, said: “This was a deeply distressing case in which Mehmet Ogur deliberately ignored the victim’s clear refusal of consent. His behaviour escalated from unwanted advances to a violent and traumatic rape. The CPS worked closely with Staffordshire Police to build a strong case, including forensic evidence, CCTV, and the victim’s courageous testimony, which ultimately led to his conviction.”
The case has drawn attention to the challenges of prosecuting sexual offences and the ongoing need to protect victims while ensuring that justice is delivered in the courts.
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