A man has been jailed for life with a minimum term of 14 years after admitting the religiously aggravated rape, robbery, intentional strangulation and assault of a Sikh woman in her home in Walsall.
Birmingham Crown Court heard John Ashby, 32, followed the woman from a bus last October before scouting a way into her property, arming himself with a stick and attacking her inside.
During sentencing, Mr Justice Pepperall said Ashby posed an extreme danger to women and described him as a “deeply unpleasant racist and Islamophobe”. The judge said the threshold for a life sentence had been met.
The court had earlier heard harrowing footage from the victim’s police interview, in which she described the moment Ashby entered her bathroom. She said: “He had a stick in his hand. I said ‘who are you’ and I started screaming. He switched off the light. He said ‘I just want fun with you’. He said ‘you are a f****** Muslim bitch’, I said ‘I am not a Muslim, I am a Sikh’.”
Prosecutors said there could be no doubt Ashby was the attacker, citing DNA evidence, fingerprints on a vape recovered from the home and the victim identifying him in an identity parade.
The Crown said Ashby targeted the woman after spotting her on a bus and following her home. Prosecutor Phil Bradley KC said Ashby assessed how he could get inside before entering through an insecure door and launching the attack.
The court heard that during the rape and assault, Ashby beat the woman with a stick, strangled her, repeated racist and anti-Muslim abuse, and forced further humiliation on her while holding her against her will for at least 24 minutes. He also stole her phone and jewellery before fleeing after being disturbed by noise outside.
A critical moment in the case came on the second day of the trial, when Ashby changed his plea after an outburst from the public gallery. The court heard the defendant had appeared to mutter “it’s all bullshit” during the Crown’s evidence, before a man in the gallery approached the dock and told him: “You’re the bullshit. You need to sort your shit out.” The judge later described it as an “ugly incident”. Ashby then asked to speak to his barrister and went on to admit the charges.
In her victim impact statement, the woman said the attack had “changed every part of my life” and that she felt “violated” in her own home. She said she no longer felt safe there, remained constantly on edge and still struggled to sleep. She told the court: “My life has drastically changed. I feel lost, I struggle to recognise myself.”
She said that even after moving home, she remained hyper-aware of every noise and no longer felt comfort in her own space. The court also heard that she and her partner had been due to marry in January, and that the impact of the attack had extended to both families. In a statement read to the court, her partner said he had suffered anxiety attacks and rarely left the house, but remained committed to supporting her recovery.
The judge said Ashby’s late guilty plea had not spared the victim from having to rewatch her video interviews, although it did spare her from being cross-examined. He told Ashby: “You pose an extreme danger to women and there is no reliable way to say how long you will remain a danger.”
The court also heard Ashby had previous convictions, including for violence and possession of an offensive weapon, along with a history of drug abuse. Mr Justice Pepperall said there were disturbing entries in his medical records, including an earlier incident in which he grabbed a woman in public and later said he was “sexually frustrated”.
Defence barrister Michelle Heeley KC said Ashby had previously been sectioned and had diagnoses including autism spectrum disorder, but the judge said there was no evidence of a serious underlying mental illness that could explain the offences. He said the most significant factor in understanding Ashby’s condition was his drug use, including crack cocaine and synthetic cannabinoids.
The court heard Ashby tested positive for cocaine after his arrest. The judge said his neurodevelopmental disorders did not begin to explain the crimes.
BPI News has also seen social media posts appearing to show Ashby wearing the same Aston Villa jacket he was said in court to have worn during the attack. BPI News has also seen posts from Ashby’s social media accounts which appear to show him smoking what looks to be cannabis.
In another social media post reviewed by BPI News, text on screen appeared to read: “I love you sexy dark skin girls and pawgs I pray for a twerker gf.” The defence said the victim had not been specifically targeted, but the prosecution case was that Ashby picked her out on the bus and followed her home.
Ashby was sentenced to life imprisonment and ordered to serve a minimum of 14 years before he can be considered for release.