A man who snatched a five-year-old girl from a Birmingham street to sexually assault her has been sentenced to 11 years in prison. Abdulraziq Mohammed, 33, a Sudanese national, took the child into his shared house in Winson Green on March 30 last year, triggering a frantic search by her mother and a friend.
Horrific Details of the Attack
The incident occurred at around 2pm when the girl was playing outside. Mohammed made sexual comments to the child's mother before abducting the girl and taking her to his room in a house of multiple occupancy. The mother and her friend began searching desperately after noticing the girl was missing.
Her mother heard crying coming from inside a property and her friend looked through an open window to see Mohammed with the girl, both with their bottoms pulled down. When the friend attempted to climb through the window, Mohammed punched her, causing her to fall back onto the street.
Public Intervention and Arrest
Members of the public then forced entry into the house, detained Mohammed, and rescued the girl, returning her to her mother. West Midlands Police were called and arrested Mohammed at the scene. Officers noted that Mohammed was shirtless with his trousers undone and no undergarments when detained.
Mohammed was found guilty at Birmingham Crown Court last year of false imprisonment with intent to commit a sexual offence and sexual assault of a female under 13. He was also convicted of assaulting the woman who tried to climb through his window.
Recent Sentencing and Victim Impact
Today, Mohammed appeared via videolink from HMP Long Lartin for sentencing on those charges, as well as additional offences of assault, attempted assault, and criminal damage from March 25 last year, to which he had previously pleaded guilty.
Prosecutor Tariq Shakoor presented a victim impact statement from the girl's mother, describing how her daughter has transformed from a "happy-go-lucky girl to a child who appears to have some complex behavioural needs." The mother herself struggles with mental health issues, including anxiety, panic attacks, and sleepless nights, and has been signed off work, suffering financially.
Judge's Remarks on the Case
Her Honour Judge Maylin, who presided over the trial, summarised the case, noting that the mother had looked away for less than ten seconds when the girl was taken. The judge described the mother's "frantic search" and her efforts to break a window with a scaffolding board to reach her daughter.
Judge Maylin told Mohammed: "It must have been a horrific experience for her to bang on the door and window and see her daughter inside. Still you didn't let her daughter leave your room." The judge also highlighted the assault on the mother's friend and commended the public intervention that led to Mohammed's detention.
Limited Mitigation and Police Statement
Amy Jackson, defending Mohammed, acknowledged there was "relatively little mitigation" in the case. She mentioned Mohammed's age discrepancy (claiming to be 38 rather than 33), his background from Sudan with reported trauma, loss of contact with family due to incarceration, and previous positive employment. She also cited his physical and mental health difficulties, including anxiety and depression exacerbated by drug use, and noted he has no prior convictions for sexual offences.
Detective Sergeant Nicky Simms of West Midlands Police's Central Complex Child Abuse Investigation Team stated: "Abdulraziq was a predatory individual who took a young girl off the street and into his house. Fortunately, incidents of this nature are rare. I must praise the courage of the girl and her mother in what has been a very sensitive investigation."
The sentencing underscores the severity of the crimes and the lasting impact on the victims, with Mohammed now serving an 11-year prison term for his actions.
