A Syrian asylum seeker has been jailed for sexually assaulting a woman who was walking home from a Cardiff nightclub.
Fawaz Alsamaou, aged 33 and residing in Huddersfield, targeted the victim during the early morning of May 12, 2024, after she departed from the LGBTQ+ nightclub in the city centre.
The woman noticed someone trailing her before being attacked in the Cathays area.
Cardiff Crown Court heard that Alsamaou admitted charges of sexual assault and intentional strangulation, with Judge Celia Hughes indicating he faces deportation upon completing his sentence.
Security footage captured Alsamaou loitering outside the nightclub entrance, dressed in a gilet, white t-shirt and jeans, before he began pursuing the woman through the streets of the Welsh capital.
Cardiff Crown Court was told that surveillance cameras documented Alsamaou’s movements as he stalked the woman from the LGBTQ+ venue.
He maintained a short distance behind her before attacking her beneath a railway bridge near Senghenydd Hall.
Officers launched an extensive investigation following the assault, with detectives utilising CCTV footage to track the perpetrator’s movements through Cardiff.
Fawaz Alsamaou has been jailed
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SOUTH WALES POLICE
In a Victim Personal Statement read to the court, the woman, now aged 24, described the impact of the crime.
She said: “The attack that happened on me has had a lasting effect on me to this day and I still think about it every day. Now I feel that I am looking over my shoulder more and always thinking the worst.
“I don’t feel safe going anywhere by myself and still I don’t feel safe now when it is dark outside.
“I want the male responsible for the attack to serve justice. Not only so I can have closure from the incident but to ensure that this doesn’t happen to any other females in the future.”
Fawaz Alsamaou was seen leaving the LGBT+ nightclub
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SOUTH WALES POLICE
Alsamou was convicted and sentenced at Cardiff Crown Court to three years and one month in prison for the sexual assault and 16 months concurrent for intentional strangulation.
The court was told he will likely be deported following his sentence.
Judge Celia Hughes said: “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.
“You say that you’re a practising Muslim but your behaviour that night casts doubt on the practice of your faith.”
Detective Sergeant Alex Lloyd, from South Wales Police, said: “Everyone has the right to feel safe, any time of day, wherever they are, and South Wales Police does everything possible to ensure people feel safe when going about their everyday business.
“We hope today’s sentencing gives the victim the closure that she has been seeking.
“Stranger incidents like that are very unusual, but when they do happen, we use all available policing methods, including media appeals for information, to bring offenders to justice.
“We would like to acknowledge the bravery of the victim in speaking out and thank BBC Crimewatch for their assistance.”