A man has been sentenced to 11 years in prison for abducting a five-year-old girl with intentions of committing a sexual offense. Abdulraziq Mohammed, aged 33, took the girl from outside while she was playing and brought her into his room at a shared residence in Winson Green, Birmingham, at 2 pm on March 30 last year. The child’s mother, along with a friend, frantically searched for the girl before hearing cries coming from inside the house. Mohammed and the girl were spotted with their shorts down by the mother’s friend who looked through an open window.
Upon the mother’s attempt to climb in through the window, Mohammed punched her. Members of the public intervened, detained Mohammed, and alerted the police, according to West Midlands Police. Mohammed was convicted of false imprisonment with intent to commit a sexual offense, sexual assault of a female under 13, and assaulting the woman trying to climb through the window following a trial at Birmingham Crown Court.
Appearing via videolink from HMP Long Lartin in Worcestershire, Mohammed, a Sudanese national, was sentenced to 11 years in prison. He will serve up to two-thirds of the sentence in custody before being eligible for parole consideration. Additionally, he was given a four-year extended license, totaling a 15-year sentence. The court heard a victim impact statement from the girl’s mother detailing the emotional toll on her daughter and herself due to the incident.
During the proceedings, the judge highlighted the traumatic experience inflicted on the mother and her friend during the search for the child. Mohammed’s actions were condemned, and his predatory behavior was underlined by the court. The defense counsel mentioned Mohammed’s personal challenges, including mental health issues and the loss of contact with his family due to incarceration. Despite these factors, the severity of the crimes committed was emphasized during the sentencing.