Jail for Gay Village rape monster who fled sexual persecution Elhadi Sakhri, 42, who preyed on revellers at Canal Street, drove terrified young men to lonely spots and brutally attacked themA rapist cab driver who brought terror to Manchester’s Gay Village after fleeing homophobic persecution in Algeria has been jailed.
Elhadi Sakhri, 42, preyed on revellers at Canal Street. Terrified young men were driven to lonely spots and brutally attacked before being abandoned miles from home.
Manchester Crown Court heard that asylum seeker Sakhri won indefinite leave to remain in Britain nine years ago after complaining he faced persecution in Algeria because he was bisexual.
Now, after admitting two charges of rape, Sakhri, of Thorn Court, Pendleton, Salford, has been jailed for seven years and ten months. He is expected to be deported on release because of the seriousness of his crimes.
The first victim got into Sakhri’s cab at Bloom Street after a night partying in the Gay Village in the early hours of June 27. During the journey the driver quizzed the 18-year-old about his sex life and groped him.
Sakhri then sped past the passenger’s destination, pulling over in the car park of Langdale Hall, a student halls of residence which was largely unoccupied at the time. He ordered the victim out of the vehicle, shoved him against a wall and attacked the screaming teenager.
In the early hours of July 12 Sakhri struck again. CCTV captured him prowling behind his next victim, before doing a u-turn and driving up to him at the Midland Hotel.
The 22-year-old man, who had been clubbing in the Gay Village, said he wanted to go to Stretford.
Sakhri instead drove to Salford, ignoring pleas to stop, weaving through the backstreets until he reached a patch of wasteground at Hulme Street, where he raped the man. Sakhri was traced by CCTV and numberplate recognition technology.
Rachel Shenton, prosecuting, told court that the first victim described how his ordeal had left him feeling ‘constantly sick’. The second victim was left ‘devastated’, the court heard. Sakhri claimed the encounters were consensual before finally admitting guilt on the day of trial.
Nicola Gatto, defending, said of Sakhri: “He tells me he came to this country because of intolerance to his sexuality. For many years he worked in the security industry along Canal Street – on a daily basis he was dealing with young gay men in a vulnerable condition because of alcohol and yet it seems he was highly regarded.
“Quite what lies behind this offending is unclear. It seems he was leading quite a solitary existence... he had a minimal circle of friends and hadn’t had a relationship for some considerable time.”
Miss Gatto said that Sakhri had been ostracised by his Muslim family and was devastated to face deportation. She said he believed he would be at ‘physical risk’ in Algeria, where villagers had learnt of his crimes.
Locking him up and ordering him to sign the Sex Offenders’ Register for life, Judge Martin Steiger QC said Sakhri had ‘taken advantage’ of his position to commit sex crimes.
source:
http://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/ ... er-1325779
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