Two 17-year-old Afghan asylum seekers, Israr Niazal and Jan Jahanzeb, were sentenced at the Warwick Crown Court in UK‘s Leamington Spa on Monday, for the rape of a 15-year-old girl that took place in May.
The victim was with friends when the defendants befriended her and led her to a secluded “den-type” area in the parkland. Court footage from her phone showed her visibly distressed, pleading “let me go” and screaming for help as they dragged her away, The Daily Mail reported.
A man who spotted the victim in distress stopped to help her and encouraged her to report the matter immediately to the police, as per reports.
Who are the attackers?
Niazal arrived in the UK from Afghanistan in November 2024, while Jahanzeb arrived in January 2025. Both were unaccompanied minors assessed as 17 after age tests.
Investigation and sentencing
Warwickshire Police used CCTV and the victim’s phone video footage to trace the convicts. Detective Chief Inspector Richard Hobbs praised her bravery, noting specially trained officers supported her throughout. Deputy Chief Crown Prosecutor Ben Samples called it a “profoundly damaging crime,” crediting evidence like recordings and testimony.
They have pleaded guilty to rape of a child under 16 at Coventry Youth Court in October 2025, with Jahanzeb receiving a term of 10 years 8 months and Niazal being sentenced to 9 years 10 months in youth detention.
Both were living in taxpayer-funded housing at the time of the attack. Jahanzeb now faces deportation, though Niazal may remain in the UK because he pleaded guilty a day before turning 17.
“No child should have to suffer the ordeal (the victim) has suffered. The fact is, you two have robbed her of her childhood and nothing that the sentence of this court and nothing I can do today can restore that,” the judge said.
Outrage over the case
The case has led to outrage pouring in from all corners and comes at a time of increasing anti-immigrant sentiment both in the UK and other Western countries.
Most recently, another Afghan national, Rahmanullah Lakanwal, was named as a suspect in the gunning down of two National Guard troops near the White House on the eve of Thanksgiving.
Since the shooting, roughly two dozen arrests of Afghan immigrants have taken place across the US, according to The Associated Press.