Man sentenced for assaulting two women in Cathays as they walked home from night out

A man has been sentenced after he assaulted two women in Cathays whilst they were walking home from a night out.

Ali Hamad attacked the two women, who did not know him, on Cathays Terrace on 24th November last year.

He approached them before sexually assaulting one and slapping the other in the face several times. A passerby then intervened, which is when the police arrested Hamad.

One of the women appeared at Cardiff Magistrates Court saying he walked up to them near Tesco Express in Cathays at 3:20am and asked where they lived and if they had any money.

According to Wales Online, she then said he put his hand on her friends shoulder and when she asked him t0 leave them alone he “got very aggressive” striking her and grabbing both her arms into a “vice grip that left bruises on [her] arm”.

The court heard how Hamad hit the girl so hard her glasses fell off. Although, in his police interview, he claimed he was the victim of aggression by the two women and pleaded not guilty to sexual assault and two counts of assault by beating.

Hamad’s age was also discussed in court with there being confusion over whether he was 24 or 27. His immigration status was also discussed, with the Sudanese national saying he is an asylum seeker with an “expired card”.

However, this wasn’t Hamad’s first offence, as it was reported that a few months prior he had committed three other sexual assaults as well as acts of public indecency.

Most Read

All the strict rules the 1,057 men had to abide by if they wanted to sleep with Bonnie Blue

In the ultimate statement to Bonnie Blue, Lily Phillips reveals *another* foul stunt she’s doing

The bleak aftermath of Bonnie Blue’s 1,000 guys in 12 hours challenge, in pictures

He was sentenced for crimes in London two weeks prior to the assaults in Cardiff. Witnesses, claimed he was “openly masturbating” on public transport in July making several female witness feel very uncomfortable. During this incident, he also touched a woman with his penis too.

Cathays Terrace via Google Maps

Furthermore, he was caught masturbating by an off-duty female police officer on a bus. He also reached through the seats and “touched her bottom” too.

After his hearing in Croydon Magistrates Court in November, he was sentenced to 12 weeks in prison but due to his time spent on remand, he was released. This is when moved to Cardiff, and soon after assaulted the aforementioned two women in Cathays.

Defending, Victoria Maud, suggested that one of the victims was the “aggressor” and had grabbed Hamad first, to which she replied: “No, it was non-consenual touch. We’re just two girls walking home from a night out. We should be able to do that without unsolicited touching.”

The other victim then explained how “terrified” she had been during the encounter: “As soon as he was arrested I burst into tears.”

Wales Online reported that Hamad claimed in court that he was “visiting a friend” on the night and “asked the lady for her number”, after which he claims that one of the girls “out of nowhere […] started striking” him”.

Prosecuting, Alex Dubljevic, asked the defendant why he asked for one of the women’s phone numbers, with Hamad replying: “I wanted to get to know her better…I liked her physique and I asked for her number.” However, he denied being sexual with them.

Mr Dubljevic, on the other hand, argued against this, to which the presiding judge, Judge Williams agreed, saying: “I found your evidence contradictory.

“You said you didn’t find the two victims attractive yet you asked [one of the women] for her number. You said you were attacked first but that is not borne out by the video. I am satisfied the touching of her shoulder brought you sexual gratification as you were attracted to her. It was 3am and she was unable to stop you.”

Judge Williams found the defendant guilty on all charges. She told the court: “”Your behaviour can only be described as predatory. You have deliberately targeted and approached two lone females. You have intimidated them and assaulted them physically and sexually.

“I have no doubt this was done for your own sexual gratification. The victims were terrified by your behaviour and described the mental bruising as ‘eternal’. You clearly have an emerging pattern of offending against females.”

Hamad has been sentenced to eight months and order to pay £550 compensation in total to the victims of his assault. Judge Williams also imposed a 10-year sexual harm prevention order which means he “can only be in the company of a lone female if she is aware of your previous convictions for sexual offences or if you have the permission of your managing police officer”.

Featured image via South Wales Police