A 23-year-old Afghan asylum seeker who entered the UK by small boat has been convicted of abducting and repeatedly raping a 12-year-old girl in Nuneaton, Warwickshire. He will face automatic deportation to Afghanistan after serving any prison sentence imposed.
Ahmad Mulakhil crossed the English Channel in a dinghy in March 2025. Following a 10-day trial at Warwick Crown Court, he was unanimously found guilty of two counts of rape of a child under 13. He had previously pleaded guilty to one count of oral rape of a child under 13. He was also convicted of child abduction, two counts of sexual assault, and taking an indecent video of a child. All offences occurred on 22 July 2025.
Prosecutors told the court that Mulakhil first saw the girl playing on swings in a park earlier that day. He later approached her in the town centre—interaction captured on CCTV, engaged her in conversation, and lured her to a secluded cul-de-sac. There, he subjected her to repeated rape, filmed the assault, laughed during the attack, ignored her repeated pleas to stop, and threatened to kill her family if she told anyone. In a police video interview, the girl described how she begged him to get off her as he attempted to remove her clothing, and said she felt terrified when he took photographs of her during the ordeal.
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Following the attack, Mulakhil took the visibly distressed girl to a nearby corner shop, where he used his Home Office-issued Aspen debit card (containing asylum support funds) to purchase two cans of Red Bull. This transaction provided detectives with crucial evidence to identify him. Members of the public later discovered the girl in a local park in a highly distressed state and contacted emergency services. Police arrested Mulakhil four days later at his taxpayer-funded accommodation in Nuneaton, where he had been living unsupervised alongside other asylum seekers.
During the trial, Mulakhil claimed he believed the victim was 23 or 24 years old, despite her clearly youthful appearance and the fact that she had told him on CCTV she was 19—an assertion prosecutors described as obviously implausible.
His co-defendant, Mohammad Kabir, 24, also an Afghan national who had arrived by small boat on Christmas Day 2024, was acquitted of charges including attempted child abduction, committing an offence with intent to commit a sexual offence, and intentional strangulation.
Judge Kristina Montgomery KC remanded Mulakhil in custody pending sentencing. She indicated that he faces a significant custodial term and will be subject to mandatory deportation upon completion of any sentence exceeding 12 months. The Home Office stated that foreign national offenders receiving prison sentences are referred for deportation at the earliest opportunity, and confirmed ongoing reforms to accelerate removals and close loopholes exploited by foreign criminals.
Although the UK does not recognise the Taliban administration and lacks a formal returns agreement with Afghanistan, 41 convicted individuals have been returned to the country over the past three years. A senior Taliban official indicated to media that the group would accept Mulakhil’s return, along with other Afghans held in foreign prisons, though the absence of established diplomatic channels would make the process complex. Any returned individual would likely face retrial under Islamic law.
Detective Chief Inspector Collette O’Keefe of Warwickshire Police described the attack as targeted and opportunistic. She emphasised the profound, lifelong trauma inflicted on the victim, praising the 12-year-old’s remarkable courage in coming forward and assisting investigators—using fidget toys and wooden models during her recorded interviews. The detective stressed that the investigation and prosecution were conducted rigorously, with focus placed entirely on the severe harm caused to the child, irrespective of the offender’s nationality or immigration status.
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