³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ

Two men who raped a student in a flat in Belfast five years ago have been sentenced.

Mohammed Ibrahim Hassan, 30, of Orient Gardens, Belfast, was given a six-and-half year sentence for rape, oral rape and sexual assault by penetration.

His co-accused, 26-year-old Abdiqani Abdulkadir Muhaiden of Malone Road in the city, was handed a five-year sentence for one count of oral rape.

At Belfast Crown Court on Wednesday, the pair were told their sentences would be divided equally between custody and license, and they would be placed on the sex offenders register for life.

The men, who are both Somalian nationals, were found guilty earlier this year.

They maintain the sexual activity with the victim was consensual.

During the trial, the jury heard that on 3 October 2019, the victim left her part-time job in the city centre at about 21:30 and met up with friends at a bar on the Dublin Road for drinks.

The group then went to Thompsons Garage nightclub at about 23:00 where more alcohol was consumed.

The victim, who was a student at the time of the attack, said during her evidence that having little to eat and the amount of alcohol consumed meant her memory was "hazy" leaving the nightclub at 03:00.

Outside she met Muhaiden, who called himself JJ, and after a conversation they went to a fast food outlet with her friend and another male they met in Thompsons.

The victim's friend tried to persuade her to leave, but she said she was going with Muhaiden.

The pair went to a taxi office where Muhaiden bought a bottle of vodka before taking a taxi to Hassan's Ulsterville Avenue flat.

At the flat, the victim was taken to a bedroom where she was given more alcohol and a cannabis joint.

The court heard the woman describe herself as "very drunk" at this point and she could not recall either of the men drinking vodka.

She later texted a friend at 04:48 asking if she could stay at his as she found the situation "weird".

She said both men were talking in a foreign language and she later passed out.

Her next memory was waking up on top of the bed naked, with both vaginal and oral intercourse taking part.

The court heard that she asked the men to stop and that she was in pain, but they both continued.

After leaving, she told her friends about the incident and was taken to a sexual assault referral clinic.

Police were alerted and after the arrest, Hassan said the victim had come to the flat with Muhaiden, but that the sexual activity was consensual and she had left on good terms.

Muhaiden told police he met the victim outside of the nightclub before they went to his friend's flat. He also claimed the sexual activity was consensual.

However, the jury rejected these claims and found the pair guilty.

Barrister Neil Connor KC described the victim as vulnerable due to the alcohol consumed and that as there were "two participants in sexual activity at various stages of this incident", this should be regarded as a "significant aggravating factor".

Judge Kerr said he had considered defence submissions made on behalf of both men.

The judge made reference to Muhaiden's clear criminal record, as well as his "challenging upbringing" in Somalia and his work record having arrived in Northern Ireland with his family in 2010.

The judge said Hassan has been in Northern Ireland since 2016 and has a pending asylum case as well as "problems" with alcohol.