Four Afghan nationals were found guilty of raping and grooming a teenage girl in Bristol.
A teenage boy and three men were convicted of raping and grooming a 17-year-old girl in Bristol last year.
After arranging for the victim’s transportation into Bristol, Mehrab Safi, 21, Salman Habibkheil and Awal Ahmadzai, 19, and a 17-year-old youngster whose age prevents him from being identified, gave her drink.
A jury at Bristol Crown Court today (Friday, June 26) convicted them guilty despite their denials of all the charges against them.
On Tuesday, November 25, 2025, the victim went shopping for Christmas with a friend in Bristol, when she met Safi.
Offering narcotics and a place to charge their phones, Safi attempted to persuade the victim and her companion to come to his residence, but they declined and went back home.
Safi started contacting the victim as soon as they departed, added her on Snapchat, and begged her for pornographic photos.
In cooperation with Habibkheil, he made arrangements for her to be picked up by a cab and transported to Bristol four days later, late on November 29.
After that, she was brought to Safi’s home in the city’s St Werburghs neighbourhood and given enough drink to make her inebriated.
Over the course of several hours, the four defendants sexually abused and raped her.
The victim’s mother reported her missing to the police early on November 30.
The victim and the 17-year-old boy were found in Safi’s home shortly after police arrived.
The 17-year-old was taken into custody when she informed an attending officer about the rapes.
When police arrived, the three guys bolted out of the house, but they were apprehended a few days later after being stopped after entering France and returned to the United Kingdom.
The court heard that Habibkheil and Ahmadzai used their phones to look up internet news about the incident as well as information about police and judicial procedures for similar crimes.
Following that, the four Afghan nationals were accused of the following crimes:
-Safi, a resident of St Werburghs, who identifies as “any other Asian background,” was accused of two charges of rape and one count of arranging or aiding a female’s journey with the intention of exploiting her.
-Habibkheil, a Lockleaze resident who identifies as belonging to “any other Black background,” was accused of one count of rape and one count of arranging or aiding a female’s journey with the intention of exploiting her.
-Ahmadzai, who does not have a fixed address and self-identifies as “any other Asian background,” was accused of one count of sexual assault and one count of rape.
One count of rape was brought against the 17-year-old kid.
They all insisted that the sexual intercourse had been consensual and denied the offences.
But the Bristol Crown Court jury convicted them of each crime.
On Tuesday, October 6, they will be sentenced in the same court.
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