Illegal migrant, 42, who raped woman in Hyde Park while living in the Hilton hotel is a convicted terrorist
An Egyptian asylum seeker who was jailed for raping a woman in London's Hyde Park is a convicted Islamic terrorist, it has emerged.
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Abdelrahmen Adnan Abouelela, 42, was found guilty in his absence of being part of a bomb-making cell in Egypt and given a seven-year jail sentence on May 5, 2015.
Abouelela, a member of the radical Muslim Brotherhood movement, escaped from Egypt before being convicted.
Read more: Second ‘one in, one out’ UK deportation flight takes off with no migrants on board
He arrived in the UK where he claimed asylum and was housed at the taxpayer’s expense in a Hilton hotel in London while his application was considered, the Daily Mail reports.
The Home Office took 17 months to make a decision about his asylum application despite reportedly being aware of his bomb-making conviction, before he raped a woman in Hyde Park last November.
He was convicted of rape at Southwark Crown Court on May 22 this year and was jailed for eight and a half years on Tuesday.
He apparently first claimed asylum in Turkey after fleeing Egypt, being detained for at least 72 days at Ataturk airport in Istanbul.
He went on to leave Turkey and claimed asylum when he arrived in the UK in April 2023 saying he would face persecution if he was returned to Egypt.
The Muslim Brotherhood is regarded as a terror organisation in many countries, although it is not banned in the UK.
The Metropolitan Police yesterday released a picture of Abouelela, a day after news of his conviction emerged.
The married father-of-one approached the victim as she was walking home alone from a night-out in central London at about 9pm and lured her to a secluded spot in the park where he raped her, Southwark Crown Court was told on Tuesday.
His address was given in court as a Hilton hotel in Ealing, west London, which is being used to house migrants, according to reports.
“You thought absolutely nothing of her,” judge Gregory Perrins told the defendant, whose address was given as a Hilton hotel in Ealing, west London.
“It must have been obvious to you that she was a woman under the influence of alcohol who was alone and vulnerable. You made the decision to take advantage of her vulnerability.
“You were driven purely by your own sexual desires. You simply did not care that she could not consent: you just took what you wanted.”
The judge said Abouelela is in the country illegally. He arrived in the UK in April 2023 and claimed asylum for fear of persecution in Egypt – his home country – where he claims he was held as a political prisoner and tortured.
His wife and son currently live in Turkey, the court heard.
Abouelela was subsequently diagnosed with emotionally unstable personality disorder and complex PTSD, defence barrister Kane Sharpe told the court.
Judge Perrins, however, stated he found this mitigating factor to be “minimal”, adding: “There is little connection between those circumstances and your decision to rape the victim on that night.
“It’s clear to me you do not believe you have done anything wrong.”
The judge further commended the victim, who cannot be named for legal reasons, for her “immense bravery and courage” in giving evidence during Abouelela’s trial at Southwark Crown Court earlier this year.
Jurors found Abouelela guilty of one count of rape on May 22.
Because he was given a prison sentence of more than 12 months, Abouelela will be subject to an automatic deportation order under the UK Borders Act 2007.
In August the Metro revealed that the once thriving Hilton hotel - the Hampton by Hilton - had been transformed into a migrant hotel.
It had scored 3.7 out of 5 in reviews, with one guest writing that the hotel had ‘excellent rooms, fab staff and superior facilities’.
The hotel, which formerly charged up to around £200 for a double room, is being run by hospitality company SD Commercial, with staff at the front door explaining to anyone trying to enter the hotel to book a room that it is now ‘private’ and not open to the public.
Owners of nearby shops have described the change as being ‘bad for business’.