Rapist hunted by police for 20 years arrested on board flight to Pakistan moments before take-off

Mohammed Ibrar Aslam raped drunk woman in 2001 after she was snatched off the street

Man hunted by police over sexual assault case for nearly two decades arrested on board a plane about to take off for Pakistan (SWNS)

A rapist who had been hunted by police for almost 20 years was finally arrested on board a flight to Pakistan moments before it was due to take off, a court heard.

Mohammed Ibrar Aslam, 47, had been a wanted man after he attacked a drunk woman in 2001 who had earlier been snatched off the street.

Despite extensive inquiries at the time of the attack, he remained at large for nearly two decades, a court heard.

West Yorkshire Police’s Cold Case Review Team began a new inquiry last year following advances in forensic science.

Following a huge and time-consuming investigation, Aslam, aged 29 at the time of the rape, was identified as a potential suspect for a DNA test.

Information about Aslam had been circulated via police and E-Border systems, a court heard.

Police finally got their man on 8 January this year after officers from the West Midlands found him on board an Emirates flight at Birmingham International Airport.

It was waiting to take off for Pakistan via Dubai, meaning “he was literally just moments away from leaving the jurisdiction,” said prosecutor Stephen Wood.

Aslam was transferred to Wakefield for questioning and initially denied being responsible for the offence or knowing the woman.

But in February he pleaded guilty to the rape charge after his DNA matched samples taken from the victim 18 years ago.

Aslam, of Birmingham, was on Thursday jailed for 11 years and three months at Leeds Crown Court.

Prosecuting, Mr Wood read from victim impact statements in which the woman described how the attack had left her with feelings of anger, shame and paranoia.

She said during the rape she “felt like a piece of meat being used” and added: ”The only thing I thought I could do was become completely detached and try to ignore what was happening to me.

“I feel as though I have lost important parts of my sanity. I will always feel unclean and suffer from very low self-esteem.”

Back in March 2001 the woman, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, had been drinking in Halifax with friends before she left a nightclub on her own in the early hours of the morning.

Mr Wood said the woman was very intoxicated and remembered staggering about and feeling ill before a car stopped and someone asked if she was alright.

The court heard that her next recollection was lying face down on a double bed.

Mr Wood said: ”She had no idea who she was with or where she was.”

The woman was being raped by a man and was forced to perform oral sex on him before she became aware there was also another man in the house.

She was offered a cup of tea and allowed to put her clothes back on before they gave her lift in a car from Bradford back to the Halifax area.

The woman, who got back to her family home at about 5.30am, gave a statement about the rape to police.

But despite extensive enquiries at the time the crime remained undetected for nearly two decades, a court heard.

Mr Wood added: “The presence of the defendant’s semen indicates that the defendant engaged in sexual intercourse with the victim at a time when she was incapable of giving informed consent.

“His guilty plea accepts that due to her intoxicated state he had no belief, reasonable or otherwise, that she was consenting.”

Mr Wood said the prosecution could not say that Aslam was involved in abducting the woman off the streets and taking her to the stranger’s house, but he said the defendant must have known that had happened.

“There was prolonged detention and she was particularly vulnerable because of her intoxication,” he added.

Mitigating, Soheil Khan told a court his client had expressed deep remorse for what had been a “one-off” incident and he wanted to apologise to the victim.

He said: “He acknowledges that his actions will have impacted on his victim in ways beyond his imagination.”

Jailing Aslam, Judge Simon Phillips QC said the police investigation was a testament to the professionalism and dedication of the team of officers involved.

The judge told Aslam via a video link to Leeds Prison that he had ruined his victim’s life.

“No sentence that the court passes can compensate for the devastating impact upon her,” the judge added.

“Effectively for every hour of every day for the past 18 years when she has been conscious the victim of your offence has been disastrously affected by your actions and the overwhelming expectation is that will remain the situation for the foreseeable future.”

SWNS