A UK court has sentenced former imam Abdul Halim Khan, an Indian national, to life imprisonment with a minimum term of 20 years after being convicted of a series of rapes and sexual assaults against seven women and girls as young as 12.
Aged 54, Khan abused seven victims from the local Bangladeshi Muslim community between 2005 and 2014, exploiting the trust and authority that came with his role as a faith leader at a mosque in east London. Prosecutors said Khan systematically lured victims to isolated locations, including private flats and secluded areas, where he carried out the attacks.
In February, Khan was convicted of 21 offences: nine counts of rape, four counts of sexual assault, two counts of sexual assault of a child under 13, five counts of rape of a child under 13 and one count of assault by penetration.
Sentencing Khan at Snaresbrook Crown Court, Judge Leslie Cuthbert condemned his “deliberate distortion of the Muslim faith”.
“You had a position of significant power and authority, a position you systematically abused for your own base sexual gratification,” the judge said.
“Behind a public appearance of propriety and holiness you took monstrous advantage of women who trusted you, all for your own sexual satisfaction. You brazenly raped and sexually assaulted seven females – both children and young women.”
The judge said Khan deliberately targeted vulnerable women and girls from within his own community because he believed shame and stigma would stop them from reporting him. “You were confident that if they did come forward it would be you and not they who would be believed,” Judge Cuthbert said.
The court heard Khan manipulated victims by claiming he had supernatural powers and needed to cleanse them of evil spirits. He told some victims he was possessed, while threatening others that “black magic” would harm them or their families if they spoke out.
In one case, Khan falsely told a young victim she had ovarian cancer that only he could cure before taking her to a secluded location and raping her.
Throughout the trial, Khan denied the allegations, claiming he was the victim of a conspiracy and insisting the accusations had been fabricated for revenge.
Abdul Halim Khan: Indian imam gets life imprisonment in UK after raping 7 women, girls from Bangladeshi Muslim community
