Ahmedabad Times

John Ashby, a person from the UK who raped a Sikh lady after wrongly believing she was Muslim, has been given a life sentence. Ashby, who admitted his crimes earlier within the week, was sentenced on Friday.Throughout sentencing at Birmingham Crown Courtroom, Mr Justice Pepperall described Ashby as a “deeply disagreeable racist and Islamophobe”, as reported by the BBC.The assault passed off in October 2025, when Ashby adopted the lady, who was in her 20s and unknown to him, after she received off a bus. He tracked her to her house in Walsall and entered the property carrying a stick he had picked up from the bottom.As soon as inside, he assaulted her, putting her with the stick and making an attempt to strangle her earlier than forcing her into the lavatory, the place he raped her. Through the assault, he shouted anti-Muslim abuse, although the sufferer repeatedly advised him she was Sikh.Prosecutors mentioned the violence continued as he pressured her right into a bed room, the place he made degrading remarks and poured sizzling water over her. He additionally pressured her to say “hallelujah” throughout the ordeal. The assault ended when he gave the impression to be disturbed by a noise exterior, after which he fled, taking jewelry and the sufferer’s cell phone.The lady alerted police shortly after the incident, and officers arrived inside minutes. She later recognized Ashby in an identification parade, and he was arrested two days after the assault.Ashby admitted prices of rape, theft, intentional strangulation and religiously aggravated assault throughout the trial. He has been advised he should serve a minimal of 14 years earlier than being thought-about for parole.