Man forced his way into woman's home and raped her while her daughter was upstairs

A man forced his way into a woman's home before raping her while her daughter was upstairs.

After forcing himself into the woman's home in Newport, Saif Hussain “shouted at” her for a prolonged period, before forcibly removing her trousers, pulling her hair, hitting her and then raping her, a court heard.

Hussain, who sacked his own counsel and repeatedly shouted incoherently at Judge Michael Fitton during his sentencing hearing, was found guilty of rape and assault by penetration by a jury in October.

Prosecutor Roger Griffiths told Cardiff Crown Court that after hearing her mother’s cries, her daughter, who was upstairs in the house, rang 999 and asked for officers from Gwent Police to get to the house immediately.

Upon arrival at the house, it was clear Hussain was under the influence of drugs and alcohol, Mr Griffiths explained.

In a victim impact statement read to the court, the mother recounted the harrowing experience and said her daughter has missed months of school as a result of the ordeal. “I suffer panic attacks, I cry most of the time, I need counselling,” she said. “My daughter has not gone back to school since this happened.

“I just want my life to be back to normal. Since this ordeal and nearly 14 months on I have had nothing but stress over not just what happened to me but also wanting it to all be over with. The trial prolonged that trauma.

“The whole experience has caused me to lash out at family and friends. It has affected how I feel about relationships, and has caused me to not trust men anymore. I would rather just be alone now.

"My daughter has missed a large amount of school which has impacted her mental health so negatively.

“It has caused me to be a changed person for the rest of my life, and what makes it worse is that it has damaged my daughter’s life.

“No child should hear what she heard and have to watch her own mother fall apart over it. I will spend years processing and coming to terms with what he did to me. I hope the punishment he receives prevents him from harming anyone else.”

Hussain has three previous convictions for battery, breach of a restraining order, and harassment. Judge Fitton told Hussain that while none of his previous convictions relate to sexual offences, they “raise a number of concerns about you as a person and your treatment of women”.

Sentencing Hussain, Judge Fitton described the defendant as “overbearing, abusive, and violent”.

“You are not helped by the fact that you have shown not a shred of remorse or understanding of what you did,” he added. “You knew that her daughter was upstairs. She was so frightened that she called the police.”

Judge Fitton sentenced Hussain, of High Cross Lane in Newport, to nine years, at least two-thirds of which he will serve behind bars. He is also subject to a restraining order for ten years and will remain on the sex offenders register indefinitely.

Police staff investigator Emily Harris, the officer in the case, said: “Through his actions, Mr Hussain has caused immense ongoing suffering to the victim, further compounded by the trauma of going through a long-awaited trial."

“Mr Hussain has, at every turn, denied responsibility for his actions and has shown no empathy or remorse throughout this process", she added.

"I commend the unwavering courage of the victim and her daughter throughout this ordeal and hope that this sentence allows them to move on with their lives and provides the closure they’ve so desperately needed.”