Brighton beach rapist housed in 3-star hotel after ‘murder conviction’ | UK | News
A small boat migrant convicted of raping a woman on Brighton beach arrived in the UK after escaping a murder charge in Egypt, it has been revealed.
Karin Al-Danasurt, 20, was among three men convicted of raping a 33-year-old woman who was dragged behind a beach shack, spat on the ground and kicked in the early hours of October 4 last year. The victim said he feared the attackers, who were laughing as he drifted in and out of consciousness, would kill him.
It was revealed at an earlier court hearing that Al-Danasurt had written in his asylum application that he had been convicted of murder in Egypt during his absence, which was a death sentence. It is understood he claimed his identity was wrong and blamed his brother for the murder. His defense attorney objected that he was found guilty of murder.
The jury was not told about this history before his sentencing at Hove Crown Court, state reports show.
Questions have been raised about how Al-Danasurt could be put up in a three-star hotel in Horsham, West Sussex – just a short distance from Brighton – while he awaits a decision on his asylum claim.
Who were the other convicts?
Iranian Abdulla Ahmadi (26) and Egyptian Ibrahim Alshafe (25) were also found guilty of two counts of rape after jurors deliberated for 14 hours. Both men crossed the Channel together on the same small boat in September 2024 and were checked into the same hotel.
Al-Danasurt, who filmed the attack on his phone, was jointly found guilty of all four counts of rape. He arrived by boat in June 2025, The Sun reported. All three are people whose asylum claims were rejected, who are currently appealing the Home Office’s decision to reject their applications.
What happened on Brighton beach?
The four-week trial heard the woman was dragged behind a beach hut by a group the prosecutor described as a “pack of predators” in the early morning hours of October 4. The woman was pinned to the ground, spat on, kicked and her throat was held. Video shown to the court showed the men celebrating the attack and joking together beforehand.
Later that evening, they held a barbecue while the victim was waiting for a medical examination.
The 33-year-old victim previously told the court he feared he might have been drugged.
The victim told the court: “I woke up on the beach with light, sea and seagulls. The men were all spitting on me. I told them to stop but they didn’t. They were just laughing at me. They thought it was really funny. All I saw was that they were laughing at me every time I closed my eyes. They had no consent whatsoever.”
He added: “I can’t sleep every day. Every time I close my eyes, I see them laughing at me, torturing me.”
Al-Danasurt reportedly told the court that he had difficulty understanding consent and said, “Rape is sex to me.” He denied that the videos were recorded as a “reward” to show off to other immigrants at the hotel. Alshafe described slapping the unconscious woman in the face as “foreplay”. According to prosecutor Hanna Llewellyn-Waters KC, Ahmadi “posed for children” during the attack.
Ms Llewellyn-Waters told the court: “Frankly, for these defendants the complainant was just meat. She was repeatedly abused for sexual gratification and entertainment. They wanted sex and this could be achieved by being with someone who was in no position to resist.”
How were the men caught?
The Express understands the three men turned on each other in court; Alshafe denied even knowing Al-Danasurt, even though he was his roommate at the hotel. The judge had to intervene to tell the men to stop laughing and joking in the dock.
Ahmadi, whose asylum application was allegedly rejected before the attack, left the hotel the next morning and traveled to Crewe; where officers arrested him on October 12. It was later revealed that Alshafe’s application was rejected on the same day the band traveled to Brighton.
The trio will be sentenced on July 15. The charge of sharing intimate films without consent was withdrawn because it could only be heard in magistrates’ courts.
What has happened since the conviction?
The Home Office said it would take action to deport all three men following the sentences, but their deportation could face legal challenges.
Border Security and Asylum Minister Alex Norris said: “What this woman endured is deeply disturbing and I admire her bravery in coming forward and reporting these despicable individuals. I share the public’s outrage at their appalling actions. The perpetrators have now been rightly convicted. Once sentences are handed down, we will move to deport them from British territory.”
Holly Morton, of the Crown Prosecution Service, said: “This was an absolutely horrifying and violent attack. These men targeted her in a cynical, predatory and callous manner, dragged her to a secluded location and then raped her repeatedly for their own sexual gratification. None of us can imagine what she went through that night. Thanks to the victim’s bravery we were able to bring these dangerous men to justice and make sure they cannot target women again.”
What did the politicians say?
Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp said: “Scum like this murderer and rapist, who is also an illegal immigrant, should not be put into cozy hotels at taxpayers’ expense. This case shows that we have no idea what kind of men have entered the country by small boat since Keir Starmer became Prime Minister – 70,000 of them. We have seen the arrival of terrorists, extremists, rapists and now a murderer. British women and girls are put at risk by them every day. That’s why European Human Rights “We need to get out of their contract and deport them all within a week of their arrival.”
The Home Office said all people seeking asylum undergo mandatory security checks to identify themselves and verify their records against international crime data, and these checks were carried out in this case.
