Migrant Sex Attack as Woman Slept on Bench

Caught on camera trying to hide with a pizza box, an asylum seeker sex attacker now faces prison after a late-night encounter ended in arrest, trial and a guilty verdict.

A 25-year-old Afghan national has been convicted of sexual assault after targeting a woman who fell asleep in a public place following a night out in central London

Abid Sherzad was found guilty after a trial at Croydon Magistrates’ Court and has been remanded in custody awaiting sentence.

The court heard that the complainant, a woman in her twenties, had been eating pizza near London Bridge station in the early hours when she fell asleep on a bench. Sherzad, who had earlier purchased the takeaway meal, approached her while she was unconscious.

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She told the court she woke to find Sherzad touching her intimately

In her evidence, she said she had given no consent and had provided no indication that she was willing to engage in any sexual contact.

A passer-by intervened after witnessing the incident and recorded video footage

The recording showed Sherzad attempting to obscure his face with a pizza box when he realised he was being filmed.

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Police later identified and arrested Sherzad at a hotel in Oxford several months after the offence.

The court was told the premises were being used to accommodate asylum seekers.

Sherzad had arrived in the United Kingdom approximately nine months before the incident, which took place in June.

During the proceedings, the court heard that he had claimed asylum after leaving Afghanistan, stating that his life was at risk because his father had worked for the Afghan government.

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