Three men charged with raping a woman on Brighton beach have been ordered to stay in jail as they await trial next spring. The trio, all asylum seekers, appeared before a judge at Hove Crown Court on Monday, 8 December.
Details of the Allegations
- The men allegedly attacked a woman on the lower esplanade of Brighton around 5am on Saturday, 4 October.
- Karin Al-Danasurt, 20, an Egyptian from Lower Beeding, faces four counts of rape and also denies sharing intimate images without consent.
- Ibrahim Alshafe, 25, also Egyptian and from Lower Beeding, and Abdulla Ahmadi, 26, an Iranian from Crewe, each face two counts of rape.
- All three have pleaded not guilty to the charges.
Trial Set for March
The case follows a police investigation known as Operation Brampton. The three men are remanded in custody and will stand trial before a jury starting Monday, 16 March 2024. The trial is scheduled to last three weeks.
Language Barriers and Court Proceedings
At a previous hearing at Brighton Crown Court on 13 November, only one Arabic interpreter was available, despite two defendants speaking Arabic and one speaking Kurdish. Judges urged them via interpreters to cooperate fully.
“It is very important that you co-operate,” Judge Jeremy Gold told the defendants, using Kurdish and Arabic interpreters.
The men arrived in the UK on small boats and were awaiting decisions on their asylum claims, the Home Office confirmed.
