Wyre councillor charged with raping child
Mr Sorenson was released on bail in the meantime. The councillor was elected in 2023 when there was a clean sweep of independent candidates in the Preesall ward.Wyre Council said it could not comment while court proceedings were ongoing.
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Daily Mail
a minute ago
- Daily Mail
Two Afghan asylum seekers have been charged over the alleged rape of a 12-year-old girl in quiet Warwickshire town
Two Afghan asylum seekers have been charged over the alleged rape of a 12-year-old girl, which has left a small Midlands town reeling in shock, the Mail on Sunday can reveal. Ahmad Mulakhil, 23, has been charged with the rape of the underage girl in Nuneaton, Warwickshire. A second man, Mohammad Kabir, also 23, has been charged with aiding and abetting rape, as well as strangulation and kidnap of the girl, who is now receiving specialist care. Despite the huge interest the incident has caused in Nuneaton, sources have told the Mail on Sunday that Warwickshire Police advised local councillors and officials not to reveal the asylum seeker background of the two suspects, for fear of 'inflaming community tensions'. One local who contacted us accused the police of a 'cover-up', in an effort to suppress information which the public have a right to know. He said police feared Nuneaton would face similar violent protests that took place outside a migrant hotel in Epping, Essex, last month, after it emerged an asylum seeker staying there was charged with sexual assault, harassment and inciting a girl to engage in sexual activity. The source said: 'They're hushing it up because they don't want an Epping situation on their hands.' But last night, Warwickshire Police defended its position, saying in a statement: 'Where relevant, sensitive information around locations, details of the crime and policing activity to catch offenders can be shared, with a warning that this is sensitive or confidential information and disclosure by those being briefed could affect future court hearings.' Mulakhil, who crossed the Channel on a small boat, allegedly raped the victim in the Cheverel Street of Nuneaton, between 8.30 – 9.45pm on Tuesday, July 22. The MoS has obtained CCTV footage from a resident's house near Cheverel Road which appears to show a man walking with the girl, who is white. The chilling footage was captured as the pair walked past the property at 8pm, around half-an-hour before the victim was allegedly subjected to the horrific assault. Warwickshire Police said Mulakhil was arrested four days after the incident last Saturday, and charged the following day. He appeared before Coventry Magistrates Court on Monday charged with two counts of vaginal and oral rape of the victim. Mulakhil has been remanded in custody to appear before Warwick Crown Court on August 26. Kabir was arrested on Thursday, and charged with aiding and abetting rape of the 12-year-old, as well as strangulation and kidnap. He appeared before Coventry Magistrates Court yesterday (sat), and was remanded in custody until his appearance before Warwick Crown Court on August 26. Warwickshire Police said in a statement: 'At this stage, we do not believe there to be anyone else involved but we continue to appeal for witnesses who were in the Cheverel Street area between 8.30pm and 9.45pm on Tuesday 22 July and who saw anything of interest to please come forward.' Inquiries by the MoS in Nuneaton revealed that both Mulakhil and Kabir lived in two rented houses of multiple occupation (HMO) about 70 yards from each other on adjoining streets. Both properties are managed by Serco, which has accommodated around five asylum seekers in each house. Serco has a £1.9billion contract with the Home Office to house asylum seekers across the country. When the MoS contacted the owner of the property Mulakhil lived in, she said she was 'sickened to the stomach' when hearing about the incident. She said: 'I don't know anything because Serco manage the house completely.' When we asked Serco if they were aware of Mulakhil and Kabir, the company said in a statement: 'We do not confirm individual addresses, nor the names of people in properties we manage.' Gorwan Muhammad Ali, 27, an Iraqi Kurd who lives in the same house as Kabir, said: 'I have not seen Kabir for a few days. The police have come round the house. Kabir came to this country to work.' Ali added that all residents in the house get their bills paid by Serco, and are given £49 per week as spending money. Last night, councillors from the Tory party, as well as Labour and Reform – which controls Warwickshire County Council – said they did not know much about the incident, despite the huge interest. They blamed the police for not sharing any information with them. But a source told the MoS certain councillors and officials were informed by the police about the incident, and were advised not to reveal to the public that the two assailants were asylum seekers. The source said police feared the revelation could cause tensions in the community. The man, who did not want to be identified, said: 'It is horrific what's happened. But even though the police have done door-to-door enquiries and put out an announcement about the rape charge, they are refusing to say the details of who they are investigating or their background.' Last night, Nigel Farage, the leader of Reform, which runs Warwickshire County Council, said: 'I am afraid, police and elected officials are acting against the British people.' Warwickshire Police said in their statement: 'We work to hold offenders to account and will always do everything in our power to present a robust case to the courts and protect the integrity of court proceedings. 'Once someone is charged with an offence, we follow national guidance. This guidance does not include sharing ethnicity or immigration status. 'As our investigation progresses, the victim remains at the forefront of our focus, and we will continue to work with our partners – providing updates and working alongside the people of Nuneaton.' In recent months, other asylum seekers living in tax-payer-funded accommodation have been charged with serious sexual offences across the country. In some cases, local politicians have accused their council and the police of a 'cover-up', by trying to keep incidents secret, for fear they will inflame community tensions.
Daily Mail
2 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Police launch desperate manhunt after man is seen prowling streets of Lancashire wearing just a gimp mask
Police have launched an urgent manhunt after a nude man was seen prowling the streets of Lancashire in a gimp mask. The odd sighting was captured on doorbell cameras as the man passed houses in the town of Lytham at around 1am on Friday, July 18. The unnerving footage was later shown to Lancashire Police, with the force now issuing a desperate public appeal for information. Officers have also requested that any individuals with similar CCTV footage get in touch. Describing the bizarre incident as 'concerning', a spokesperson for the force said: 'We are aware of a concerning video circulating on social media of a naked male wearing a face covering walking around Lytham in the early hours of the morning. 'This occurred in the area of Westby Street, Cleveland Road and Bannister Street. 'We can confirm this incident occurred on the 18th July 2025 at approximately 00.50am. 'This incident was not initially reported to police and has only been brought to our attention after it has been viewed on Facebook.' The spokesperson confirmed that Fylde Rural Task Force are currently in the process of conducting both CCTV and house enquiries. They also added that the publish should be 'reassured' that officers are 'taking this matter seriously'. The shocking incident is just the latest in a run of gimp men sighted across the UK, with the country in the grips of an ongoing crisis. In 2019, residents of the sleepy Somerset village of Claverham spotted a man clad head to toe in latex, skulking around a quiet cul-de-sac. On his mask, he had crudely etched a face with bright red crosses for eyes and a snarling cut mouth wrenched into a permanent smile. Dubbed the 'Somerset Gimp', Joshua Hunt, from Claverham, was found guilty in late 2023 after he scared female drivers while dressed in a black gimp suit and mask. While he avoided jail, Hunt was banned for five years from wearing masks, dressing in all-in-one-black outfits at night and 'crawling, wriggling or writhing on the ground' in public. During a hearing at Bristol Magistrates' Court in 2023, he was convicted of two offences under the Public Order Act of intentionally causing harassment, alarm or distress. Lawrence Wilcox, representing Avon and Somerset Police, told the hearing that Hunt had been linked to 25 incidents in total. He had previously been arrested on suspicion of causing a public nuisance over a series of other 'gimp' incidents in the Cleeve, Claverham and Yatton areas last year. Many of these also saw a man rolling around the floor and making threatening noises towards people he appeared in front of late at night. But police said insufficient evidence meant no further action was taken in relation to those offences. The court heard that during a search of Hunt's home in Claverham, officers found a journal in which he had written a story about someone called Jack who purchases a black rubber suit and mask with white paint on the mask. 'The face was looking like something out of a horror film - a face that would scare the life out of anyone,' Hunt wrote. In October 2023, a gimp sighting was recorded by trick-or-treaters in Gloucester, who spotted a figure clad head-to-toe in black as they celebrated Halloween. The unknown gimp man was described by locals as 'scrawny' and 'menacing' as it briefly antagonised the residents of Twigworth on October 31. The mystery figure was spotted late at night heading toward the Bloor Homes development on Tewkesbury Road before disappearing into the night. James Patterson, who spotted the gimp, said: 'I was just taking my son out 'Trick or Treating' when I saw a black, scrawny, somewhat menacing looking figure darting and dodging down the roads in the Bloor housing estate.' Meanwhile, in Colchester, Essex, a gimp went viral during the Covid-19 pandemic after he documented himself shopping in Tesco dressed in a full gimp suit. Dubbed the 'Gimp Man of Essex', evidence of his strange behaviour dates back to 2014. However, unlike other gimps, who seem to want to spread terror, the Essex Gimp has in the past suggested alternative motives. In July 2022, he suggested he wanted to raise £1,000 for the charity Mind in mid and north-east Essex. He said: 'I'm a normal guy who just likes wearing the suit. It's a bit of an escape for me.' In late October 2022, a teenager reported a 'freaky' encounter with a man dressed in a gimp suit in Cleeve, North Somerset, at around 12.25am. A man in his 30s was later arrested on suspicion of causing a public nuisance and was released on bail. Theatre-goers at London's iconic Shakespeare Globe were also left shocked after a man dressed in a gimp suit attended a showing of The Comedy of Errors in May 2023. One audience member told The Daily Telegraph how the outfit 'extremely inappropriate' and that it made others feel uncomfortable. The concerned woman said: 'Even if a child doesn't know what a latex suit is or the sexual connotations, it's still a very scary sight and puts parents in a very uncomfortable position when it comes to explaining to their children what is going on. 'I found the whole thing extremely inappropriate and I wasn't the only one – a lot of people were obviously uncomfortable with his presence.' In March last year, two alleged sightings of so-called 'gimp men' were recorded across both Sussex and Suffolk. A dog walker, who chose to not be identified, reported encountering someone wearing 'very see-through tights' and a 'balaclava', while in Suffolk, women and girls were left fearing for their safety after alleging being followed by a masked man in a picturesque market town in Suffolk.
BBC News
5 hours ago
- BBC News
Prominent Indian ex-MP gets life sentence for rape
A court in southern India has sentenced a prominent politician in the state of Karnataka to life in prison for raping one of his domestic sentencing of Prajwal Revanna, who is from an influential political family in the state, took place on Saturday - a day after he was found guilty of sexually assaulting his former employee. The allegations against the 34-year-old former Indian MP first came to light in 2023 after hundreds of explicit videos featuring him started circulating on social media, causing outrage across the country. Revanna had denied the charges. On Friday, he broke down and pleaded for a lesser punishment when he was found guilty. He can appeal against the is a grandson of former Indian Prime Minister, H D Deve Gowda, whose Janata Dal (secular) party is allied with current Prime Minister Narendra Modi's BJP. It is rare that a person with such an influential political background gets punished in a case like this in India. Revanna left India in April 2024 using his diplomatic passport after hundreds of videos of alleged abuse began circulating in his the time, Revanna did not comment on the videos, but an official from his office said the videos had been was arrested a month later after arriving back home from Germany. He is still facing two other rape cases and one case of sexual harassment. He denies the charges.
