A private hire driver has been jailed after pleading guilty to raping a woman in Croydon.
Homayon Ahmadi, 34, of Uxbridge, was convicted of one count of rape and two counts of sexual assault at Croydon Crown Court on Wednesday, January 26.
On Thursday he was sentenced to 13 years in prison with a further seven years on license at the same court.
A 41-year-old woman called the police in April 2021 to say she had been raped by a private hire driver earlier that evening.
An investigation was launched to identify the suspect and the vehicle he was driving.
During the investigation, a 21-year-old women called police in July saying that she and a friend had been threatened after being picked up by in central London.
During the journey, the driver stopped off at an off licence and purchased whisky.
He then offered the women the alcohol and asked that they come back to his house. The women felt threatened and attempted to get out of the car while on Hornsey Street.
As they did so, Ahmadi grabbed both women and sexually assaulted them before driving away from the scene.
CCTV enquiries and analysis of mobile phone data led officers to identify a suspect buying whisky in a shop he had stopped at during the journey. A media appeal, including an image from the CCTV, was issued and in December 2021 Ahmadi was subsequently identified and arrested. Forensics linked him to the earlier rape.
Detective Natalie Alchin, who led the investigation, said: “Ahmadi is a predatory offender and we are pleased he is behind bars and unable to cause further harm.
“The victims in the case played a vital part in his conviction and we hope that this case encourages other women who have been subject to sexual offences to come forward.”
