A 24-year-old woman has shared the full horrifying story of being raped by teenage asylum seeker Wahidullah Hotak in a shop in Wednesbury, West Midlands. The attack occurred on February 27 last year after she entered the store seeking a toilet following a night out at a Wetherspoon's pub.
Hotak, an 18-year-old Afghan national who was working behind the counter, was later convicted of rape and sentenced to seven years in custody with an extended three-year licence at Birmingham Crown Court. He was declared a dangerous offender.
In a harrowing victim impact statement read out in court, the woman described the degrading experience at a Sexual Assault Referral Centre (SARC), where she was told she might have HIV or hepatitis. She had to undergo swabs, provide a urine sample, and was unable to wash for 36 hours. The assault left her with blisters, likely herpes, and ongoing pelvic pain.
She said: 'After the assault I went to the SARC. There I had to get undressed and wear a gown. I found this to be degrading and embarrassing. I wasn't allowed to wash or brush my teeth until I'd been to the SARC.'
The trauma caused clumps of her hair to fall out, stomach pains from acid reflux, and anxiety. She lost one of her two jobs because the toilets at work reminded her of the attack. At her other job in a pub, she became scared of people entering her personal space and replaced her friendly demeanor with cold bluntness. She no longer takes extra shifts and relies on her parents for financial support.
She added: 'When it first happened I didn't want to get undressed and I slept in my clothes. For the first few weeks I didn't know why I did this. My mum helped me to start wearing pyjamas again. I didn't want to look at my body or take care of myself. I stopped doing any personal grooming and stopped wearing makeup. I did this because I didn't want anyone to look at me or bring attention to myself.'
The woman now feels vulnerable around men, especially Asian men, and often thinks she sees Hotak when out, even though he was remanded in custody. Her mother checks on her at night to ensure she is still breathing, and her father has become quiet and angry. She said: 'It has destroyed all of us. What this man did to me has totally changed my life. This time last year I was 24 and out with my friends day and night. I was sociable and loving life. Since the assault I have just wanted to stay in my room in bed. I don't want to go out. I don't want to text or talk to anyone. I cry a lot. I feel lonely and isolated.'
Hotak, of Douglas Road, Handsworth, arrived in the UK in 2023 and had one asylum claim rejected, but intends to appeal. His age was disputed; prosecutors initially believed he was 26, but a document from the Afghan Ministry of Interior Affairs confirmed he was 18 at sentencing and 17 at the time of the attack. Judge Simon Drew KC sentenced him on May 7 to seven years in custody with an extended three-year licence.
