- Saturday, April 20, 2024
By: Chandrashekar Bhat
CONSERVATIVE MP Imran Ahmad Khan was on Monday (11) convicted of sexually assaulting a schoolboy in a 14-year-old case.
The assault took place in January 2008 when Khan was 34 years old and prior to him becoming an MP.
Southwark Crown Court heard that Khan, now 48, tried to force the 15-year-old to drink alcohol before sexually assaulting him in a house in Staffordshire. The boy immediately told his parents about the sexual assault.
A report was made to Staffordshire police at the time, but the victim decided he did not want to proceed and initially sought only a written apology from Khan.
When he saw that Khan had been elected as the Member of Parliament for Wakefield in 2019, he decided to pursue the complaint as he was concerned that the politician was “not fit to be in public office given what he had done”.
During the trial, the victim, who repeatedly broke down in tears, described Khan’s actions as “pretty clear signs of a child monster”.
“I don’t care what party he is in, that man sexually assaulted me,” the victim, said pointing at Khan from the witness box last month.
Rosemary Ainslie, head of Crown Prosecution Service’s special crime division, said it took considerable courage for the victim to come forward in 2008 and again in 2019.
Out of a sense of embarrassment, the victim was initially unable to disclose all the details of what had happened, Ainslie said.
“In subsequent interviews with the police he was able to tell investigators more about what had taken place and I am pleased that the jury accepted the victim’s compelling evidence about the offence committed by Khan”.
