Delivery Driver Jailed for Rape of Vulnerable Woman Outside Worthing Hospital

A 27-year-old delivery driver who raped a vulnerable woman in a hospital car park before attempting to flee the United Kingdom on a one-way flight has been jailed for eight years and three months.

Suleman Mukaish, of Worthing, West Sussex, was sentenced at Hove Crown Court on Tuesday, June 23, 2026, having pleaded guilty to rape at an earlier hearing.

In addition to his custodial term, Mukaish will spend a further three years on an extended licence following a comprehensive assessment of the danger he poses to the public.

The court heard that the incident occurred on March 11, shortly after the victim had discharged herself from Worthing Hospital. Prosecutors detailed how the woman was in a highly compromised state—described as "intoxicated, confused and unsteady on her feet"—when Mukaish targeted her.

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The defendant grabbed the struggling woman, who desperately attempted to hold on to a nearby wall to stop him, before forcing her onto the bonnet of a car in an adjacent car park where the sexual assault took place.

A short time later, a member of the public discovered the distressed victim, who disclosed that she had been raped. Sussex Police were immediately notified, and forensic teams successfully recovered matching handprints and fingerprints from the vehicle identified by the victim.

Following the attack, Mukaish made immediate preparations to evade justice. He was apprehended by police officers two days later, on March 13, at Gatwick Airport, where he was intercepted while holding a one-way ticket to Pakistan.

The court was told that Mukaish, a computer science graduate who holds a master's degree, was residing in the UK on a student visa with graduate leave that had been permitted to run until 2028.

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During the sentencing hearing, the defence counsel stated that Mukaish initially claimed he had observed the woman in distress and stopped his vehicle to assist her.

The defendant subsequently alleged that the woman had asked him for financial assistance, and that he offered her money "essentially on an understanding" that he could engage in sexual activity with her.

However, his barrister noted that Mukaish now fully accepts that the victim entirely lacked the capacity to consent.

Passing sentence, Judge Christine Henson KC condemned Mukaish’s calculated exploitation of a stranger in need.

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The judge remarked that the victim was at her absolute most vulnerable when Mukaish, a complete stranger, subjected her to a horrific assault.

Judge Henson emphasized that the ongoing psychological impact on the victim has been immense, noting that the woman continues to suffer from severe flashbacks to the extent that she remains completely unable to return to the hospital site.