Uber rape victim trusted company’s name

Driver who attacked and photographed woman after she got into his cab drunk is jailed for 12 years

AN UBER driver raped a drunk passenger who had only chosen to use the firm because it was a “reputable company”, a court has heard.

Muhammad Durrani, 38, attacked the 27-year-old after driving her home from a night out with friends. The court heard that the victim was “almost paralytically drunk” and fell asleep in the back of the car after being picked up outside a music club in Clapham last July.

Durrani, from Streatham, “lost all sense of self-control” after taking pictures of the woman as she slept.

Having dropped his disorientated victim off, he watched her struggle to find her keys as she stood on her doorstep. The married man then carried her back to his Toyota and raped her, before photographing himself lying alongside the victim while she was partially naked. The woman, assisted by a friend, had ordered an Uber believing it to be a “reputable company”, the court heard.

The victim told the jury that she remembered feeling drunk and knew that she needed to go home. She said she was “confused” and “bewildered” when Durrani picked her up, and added: “I just remember being scared.”

Durrani claimed the sex was consensual and denied one count of rape and one of assault by penetration. He was found guilty by a jury of both.

At Southwark Crown Court, Judge David Tomlinson said Durrani had done incalculable harm to his victim. He told the rapist: “It comes as no surprise to learn, and it’s no exaggeration to say, you have ruined her life.

“I think for her to come here to think back to that night was, for her, a tremendously distressing experience.”

The judge said the extent of the woman’s drunkenness “must have been obvious” to Durrani.

Durrani remained solemn as he was sentenced. His wife struggled to hold back tears in the public gallery.

Marie Spenwyn, defending, told the judge the offence was a “one-off ” and that Durrani’s relatives in the UK and his native Pakistan had written to support his character.

He was sentenced to 12 years imprisonment for the rape and eight years for the assault, to run concurrently.

Durrani was also banned from ever working in the taxi trade and subjected to a restraining order. He will be subject to a sexual harm prevention order.

An Uber spokesman said: “This was a horrific incident and we welcome this conviction.”

He added: “As soon as we heard what happened, this licensed private hire driver was immediately stopped from using our app. Every trip on the Uber app is tracked by GPS and we worked closely with the Metropolitan Police to ensure this individual was brought to justice.”

Transport for London announced last year that it would not be renewing Uber’s licence to operate in the capital, citing the firm’s approach to reporting serious criminal offences and background checks on drivers. Uber is appealing against that decision.