A man who was staying in Reading has been jailed for raping a teenage girl in Oxford, police have confirmed.
Amin Abedi Mofrad, 35, of Mill Lane, Reading, was convicted of rape and assault by penetration following a trial at Oxford Crown Court. He was found guilty on 7 October and sentenced to 12 and a half years in prison on 13 November.
The attack happened near the Westgate Shopping Centre in Oxford on 14 February last year. At the time, Abedi Mofrad was living at the Holiday Inn Express on Grenoble Road.
The incident was reported to police in April. Although CCTV footage was no longer available, officers later arrested Abedi Mofrad through Project Vigilant, a Thames Valley Police initiative that targets predatory behaviour in public spaces and the night-time economy.
Det Con Bethany Liversidge, from Oxford CID, said the victim had shown “immense courage” throughout the investigation and that her support had been vital in securing the conviction. The force said the victim and her family had requested privacy.
During the investigation, officers were informed of previously reported assaults in Germany linked to Abedi Mofrad, four of which had resulted in convictions for assault and bodily harm. The information was shared with Thames Valley Police through international protocols.
Further evidence connected to the Oxford offences was later recovered from his mobile phone, leading to his second arrest on 3 February this year. He had been staying at a hotel in Reading due to concerns for his safety after he was stabbed earlier in the year by a man he had been with at the time of the offence. That man, Syed Barzegar, has since been jailed.
Project Vigilant deploys plain-clothed and uniformed officers to identify and intervene in cases of suspected predatory behaviour, working with local venues to help prevent sexual offending.
