A MAN who raped a 17-year-old girl in Stratford has been jailed for ten years.
In 2024 the victim was using the bathroom at a gathering at a friend’s house when 22-year-old Mohammad Tawfiqi, also present at the gathering, forced his way into the room, locked the door and attacked her.
Warwickshire Police shared an appeal to trace Tawfiqi, who had told those at the house he was called Papino.
A member of the public from Hereford called the police to identify Tawfiqi, an Iranian national who was living in Stratford at the time, and he was arrested at his place of work.
He attempted to give a false name to officers – and in interview he offered a pre-prepared statement denying any wrongdoing.
But thanks to the bravery of the victim, a strong case was built against him and on Thursday March 19 at Warwick Crown Court he was found guilty of rape.
That same day he was jailed for ten years.
Detective Constable Ella Stewart said: “The victim has shown incredible bravery throughout this process and I want to publicly thank her for all she has done.
“Tawfiqi has shown no remorse for his appalling attack and, though no sentence will take away what happened, we are glad he is off the streets.”
