Three individuals have been found guilty of multiple counts of sexually assaulting a woman on Brighton beach in a calculated and heartless attack. Ibrahim Alshafe, 25, Abdulla Ahmadi, 26, and Karin Al-Danasurt, 20, asylum seekers, were convicted at Hove Crown Court for the assault on a woman who had become separated from her friends during a night out.

The court was informed that the victim was targeted by the men while she was in a vulnerable state in the early hours of October 4. The assault took place behind a beach hut in East Sussex, where two of the men committed the rape while the third filmed the incident.

Alshafe and Ahmadi, from Egypt and Iran respectively, were both found guilty of rape by the jury, while Al-Danasurt, an Egyptian national, was found guilty of all charges for encouraging and recording the assault. The jury reached their verdicts following an extensive trial that lasted over five weeks.

Evidence presented to the court included footage showing Alshafe behaving inappropriately during the attack. The defendants claimed the encounter was consensual, alleging that the victim had approached them and initiated the incident.

The victim, in her testimony, described the harrowing experience of being assaulted and expressed her anguish at the impact it had on her life. She recounted the physical and verbal abuse she endured during the attack, emphasizing that it was not consensual.

DNA evidence linked Alshafe and Ahmadi to the assault, while Al-Danasurt’s DNA samples were inconclusive. The three defendants, who were acquainted and residing in asylum seeker accommodation, were identified as the perpetrators of the assault.

The prosecution painted a damning picture of the defendants’ actions, characterizing Alshafe as a predator who targeted women that night. Following the assault, the defendants returned to their accommodation, where they engaged in normal activities, seemingly unaffected by their heinous actions.

Ahmadi fled the hotel after the assault and was later apprehended in a different location. Alshafe and Al-Danasurt were arrested at their accommodation. Additional charges against Al-Danasurt were withdrawn as they could only be tried in a different court.

The trial shed light on the disturbing events of that fateful night, highlighting the trauma experienced by the victim and the callousness of the perpetrators.