Man convicted of raping Welsh woman in Shoreditch

Welsh man convicted of rape. Pic: Chris

Welsh man convicted of rape. Pic: Chris

An east London man has been convicted for the rape of a young woman who was held naked in a car after a night out in Shoreditch last April.

Michael Wilson, 31, of Grange Road in Plaistow, was found guilty of raping the victim and his accomplice, Ahmed Qaras, 27, of Shrewsbury Road in East Ham, pleaded guilty to drink driving and driving whilst disqualified.He was found not guilty of aiding and abetting a rape.

The victim was walking alone, not knowing where she was or how to get home when the two men picked her up. Prosecutor Jennifer Knight said at a previous hearing: “It must have been abundantly apparent to the defendants that they were taking advantage of a very drunk woman.”

The woman, who is in her 20s, had lost sight of her boyfriend after a “disagreement” in an unknown Shoreditch club where they were spending the evening. The couple had come from Wales to London for the weekend to celebrate their anniversary.

The police were alerted at around 2am when they saw a car driving erratically on Cambridge Heath Road in Bethnal Green. As the car was pulled over, the two men were allegedly seen trying to swap places in order to avoid Qaras being caught driving with a disqualified license.

Wilson was found half naked in the front seat, while the victim was in the back seat, completely naked and unaware of her whereabouts. She was incapacitated and unable to say how long she’d been held for.

Detective Constable Spencer White, of the Metropolitan Police, said: “I am very pleased with the outcome of this trial, particularly for the victim. She has shown immense courage throughout the case and during the trial.”

The men will be sentenced at Snaresbrook Crown Court on December 5.

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