'I genuinely questioned if I would leave this place with my life': rapist who posed as 'good Samaritan' jailed for eight years
Mohammed Al Masri, 25, tricked a woman into a taxi from Piccadilly Gardens after a Christmas night out, but her boyfriend's quick thinking in sharing her location led police straight to the address.
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A man who posed as a "good Samaritan" to a distressed woman in Piccadilly Gardens before raping her at his home has been jailed for eight years.
Mohammed Al Masri, 25, followed the woman through the city centre on December 22 after she had been on a Christmas night out with a friend. She was on the phone to her boyfriend when Al Masri and another man approached, pestering her with compliments before offering to help her get home.
They appeared to book an Uber and typed in her address, but the woman felt unsafe in the taxi and shared her live location with her boyfriend. The taxi driver later told police the woman had passed out and the two men helped her out of the car.
She was taken to Al Masri's house in Abbey Hey, where he raped her while his friend remained in the room.
Her boyfriend had contacted police and shared her location. Officers traced the address and found the woman in bed upstairs. Al Masri was arrested at the scene.
What did the victim say?
In a statement read to Minshull Street Crown Court, the woman said: "I will never forget the fear that I felt when this man took me to his house. I had no idea who he was. I had no idea where I was. I genuinely questioned if I would leave this place with my life."
She said Al Masri tried to reassure her, telling her she was safe and her boyfriend was coming. "This was all a sick lie," she said.
"I remember thinking 'I am going to die.' I was thinking about my children and how they would be able to live without a mum. I just wanted it all to be over."
She added: "This man has changed me."
What did police and the CPS say?
Detective Constable Oliver Smith said: "I hope the sentencing of this vile sexual predator offers her a sense of solace while she looks to move on and rebuild her life."
Anna Mackenzie of the CPS said: "Mohammed Al Masri posed as a 'good Samaritan' when he offered to help the woman get a taxi home after a night out, but his motives were far more sinister. The way he targeted a lone woman who he believed would be vulnerable through alcohol was both calculating and insidious."
Al Masri, who speaks Arabic and has limited English, denied the offence and claimed sex was consensual. He was found guilty at trial in July.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Who was sentenced in this case?
- Mohammed Al Masri, 25, was sentenced to eight years in prison at Minshull Street Crown Court after being found guilty of rape.
- Where did the incident begin?
- The encounter began in Piccadilly Gardens on 22 December, before the victim was taken in a taxi to a residential address in Abbey Hey.
- How was the attacker caught?
- The victim shared her live location with her partner from inside the taxi. He then contacted Greater Manchester Police, who tracked the address and arrested the suspect.