According to major media reports, a predatory driver pretended to be a cabbie, attacked and raped a woman in her home after forcing his way in. Shabir Sultani, 27, has been jailed for 13 years after the attack in Chesterfield, Derbyshire, last year. The woman had been out enjoying a night with friends in Sheffield in spring last year, when she decided to go home.
Outside a nightclub, she got into a car driven by Sultani, which she thought was a taxi. Sultani lied to her that he was a cab driver and he would take her home. He offered the woman vodka during the journey, but she refused.
Once they reached her home in Chesterfield, Sultani crept behind the woman to her front door and forced his way in. He continued to kiss her despite her telling him to stop repeatedly, and raped her. The woman managed to kick him off her.
Sultani fled the scene, but he was later tracked down and arrested thanks to CCTV footage and automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) technology which spotted his car. Sultani, of Sturton Road, Sheffield, denied the charges, but he was found guilty following a trial at Derby Crown Court in November. The 27-year-old's sentence included an extension of seven years due to dangerousness, and he was handed a Sexual Prevention Order designed to prevent him from contacting the woman, and he was ordered to sign the Sex Offenders’ Register.
Detective Staff Investigator Beth Waite, who led the probe, commended the victim for her bravery and coming forward to report it. ' Waite concluded, 'I hope that knowing he is now behind bars will allow her some form of peace,' and encouraged others to report similar incidents, saying, 'I’d encourage anyone who has been a victim of rape or a sexual assault of any kind to please come forward and report it to us. ' The exact date or specific month in spring last year when the attack occurred has not been disclosed, nor has the name or location of the nightclub in Sheffield where the woman got into Sultani's car.
The specific details of how she kicked him off and any immediate aftermath before he fled are not known. The timeline between the attack, Sultani's arrest, and the trial at Derby Crown Court in November has not been specified. It is unknown whether Sultani had any prior criminal record or history of similar offenses.