An asylum seeker from Syria has been sentenced to three years and one month in prison after strangling and sexually assaulting a woman in Cardiff, underscoring serious concerns over migrant crime and border control policy in the UK. The 33‑year‑old man, identified as living in Huddersfield in West Yorkshire but originally from Syria, pleaded guilty to sexual assault and intentional strangulation for an attack that took place under a railway bridge near Salisbury Road in the early hours of May 12.
After a night out in a Cardiff nightclub, the 24‑year‑old victim was followed by the alleged attacker, who seized her by the neck and dragged her beneath the bridge. While there, he slipped his hand up her dress and assaulted her before she broke free and alerted police. CCTV footage helped identify the suspect, leading to his arrest and conviction.
In a victim impact statement read in court, the woman revealed the lasting emotional damage: “I’m always looking over my shoulder … I feel uneasy when it’s dark outside … I don’t go out like I used to. I’m working to get over it but this isn’t something you can just recover from.” She described nightmares, insomnia, and social withdrawal—effects of the terror she experienced.
During sentencing, Judge Celia Hughes did not mince words: “It was a horrible attack on a woman alone at night in Cardiff. She was entitled to walk home alone at night without being attacked by you, a predatory man.” The judge added that while the offender claimed to be a practising Muslim, his actions “cast doubt” on that claim and signaled a serious breach of trust and societal safety.
Although deportation was flagged by the judge as “highly likely” after the sentence ends, Britain’s membership in the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) often complicates the removal of foreign nationals—even those convicted of violent crimes. Conservative critics argue the case highlights the risks of lax asylum policies and the need to reclaim border and legal sovereignty.
