Key facts
- Three asylum seekers were convicted of rape for an attack on Brighton beach.
- Abdulla Ahmadi and Ibrahim Alshafe were convicted of two counts of rape each.
- Karin Al-Danasurt was convicted of rape as a secondary party for filming the attack.
- Ahmadi and Alshafe were each jailed for 21 years.
- Al-Danasurt was jailed for 18 years and six months.
- All three men will serve a further six years on extended licence.
Three asylum seekers have been handed lengthy prison sentences for their roles in the rape of a woman on Brighton beach. Abdulla Ahmadi, 26, from Iran, and Ibrahim Alshafe, 26, from Egypt, were each jailed for 21 years after being convicted of two counts of rape. Karin Al-Danasurt, 21, also from Egypt, was convicted of rape as a secondary party for filming the attack and was jailed for 18 years and six months. Each man will also spend a further six years on extended licence.
Sentencing the three men at Hove Crown Court, Her Honour Judge Christine Henson KC described the attack as "entirely predatory, callous and contemptuous," stating it had a "life changing profound and irrevocable impact" on the victim. The judge noted their "arrogant and entitled attitude" displayed during the trial.
Prosecutors had stated the men were "on the lookout for women that night for sexual purposes" and encountered the victim after leaving a club, with all three then going to the beach. The victim described hearing their laughter when she closed her eyes and feeling perpetually "dirty."
All three men arrived in the UK after crossing the Channel and were residing in Home Office-approved hotel accommodation for asylum seekers. Alshafe and Ahmadi arrived in the UK on June 19, 2025, while Al-Danasurt arrived on September 21, 2024. Border security and asylum minister Alex Norris stated that the men would be deported once sentencing was complete.