* Muslim abuser who 'didn't know' that sex with a girl of 13 was illegal is spared jail..
* Adil Rashid admitted travelling to Nottingham and having sex with the girl
* He met the 13-year-old on Facebook and they communicated by texts and phone for two months before they met
* He was educated in a madrassa and 'had little experience of women'
* Said he had been taught 'women are no more worthy than a lollipop that has been dropped on the ground'
* Added he was reluctant to have sex but that he was 'tempted by [the girl]'
* A muslim who raped a 13-year-old girl he groomed on Facebook has been spared a prison sentence after a judge heard he went to an Islamic faith school where he was taught that women are worthless.
* Adil Rashid, 18, claimed he was not aware that it was illegal for him to have sex with the girl because his education left him ignorant of British law.
* Yesterday Judge Michael Stokes handed Rashid a suspended sentence, saying: ‘Although chronologically 18, it is quite clear from the reports that you are very naive and immature when it comes to sexual matters.’
Earlier Nottingham Crown Court heard that such crimes usually result in a four to seven-year prison sentence.
But the judge said that because Rashid was ‘passive’ and ‘lacking assertiveness’, sending him to jail might cause him ‘more damage than good’.
Rashid, from Birmingham, admitted he had sex with the girl, saying he had been ‘tempted by her’ after they met online.
They initially exchanged messages on Facebook before sending texts and chatting on the phone over a two-month period.
They then met up in Nottingham, where Rashid had booked a room at a Premier Inn.
The girl told police they stayed at the hotel for two hours and had sex after Rashid went to the bathroom and emerged wearing a condom.
More...Mother of dying 15-month-old girl carried into hospital by 'sadistic' paedophile who had fatally abused her sees him jailed for 25 years
Paedophile, 25, had sex with girl, 12, as he hid in her bedroom for TWO DAYS while her unknowing parents sat downstairs
Rashid then returned home and went straight to a mosque to pray.
He was arrested the following week after the girl confessed what had happened to a school friend, who informed one of her teachers.
He told police he knew the girl was 13 but said he was initially reluctant to have sex before relenting after being seduced.
Encounter: Rashid and the girl had met randomly on Facebook and had also communicated by phone and text messages for two months before they met
Earlier the court heard how Rashid had ‘little experience of women’ due to his education at an Islamic school in the UK, which cannot be named for legal reasons.
After his arrest, he told a psychologist that he did not know having sex with a 13-year-old was against the law. The court heard he found it was illegal only when he was informed by a family member.
In other interviews with psychologists, Rashid claimed he had been taught in his school that ‘women are no more worthy than a lollipop that has been dropped on the ground’.
When Judge Stokes said Rashid ‘must have known it was illegal, unless he was going round with his eyes shut’, defence lawyer Laban Leake said reports suggested Rashid had a ‘degree of sexual naivety’.
‘The school he attended, it is not going too far to say, can be described as a closed community and on this occasion this was perpetuated by his home life.
Rashid had pre-booked a family room at the Premier Hotel in Goldsmith Street, Nottingham where he took his victim
Sentenced: Rashid admitted at Nottingham Crown Court (pictured) that he had sex with a 13-year-old after she 'tempted' him
‘It is not too far to say that he may not have known that having sex with a 13-year-old girl was illegal.’ Judge Stokes sentenced Rashid to nine months youth custody, suspended for two years, along with a two-year probation supervision order.
Describing Rashid, the judge said: ‘He’s had an unusual education, certainly in terms of the sexual education provided. Comparing women to lollipops is a very curious way of teaching young men about sex.’
But he said that Rashid knew what he was doing was wrong.
‘It was made clear to you at the school you attended that having sexual relations with a woman before marriage was contrary to the precepts of Islam,’ he said.
Addressing Rashid, the judge said: ‘I accept this was a case where the girl was quite willing to have sexual activity with you. But the law is there to protect young girls, even though they are perfectly happy to engage in sexual activity.’
Read more:http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2268395/Adil-Rashid-Paedophile-claimed-Muslim-upbringing-meant-didnt-know-illegal-sex-girl-13.html#axzz2K9fAsqiS
Wednesday, February 06, 2013
"We the parents demand that our children be protected from lewd acts"
Outraged parents staged a protest Monday at the southern California elementary school where one teacher allegedly fondled second-graders and another allegedly spoon-fed students his semen.
It doesn't appear the two teachers conspired together, authorities said, but both were arrested last week on suspicion of sex abuse — sending shock waves through the community of Miramonte Elementary School in South Los Angeles.
The protesting parents carried a large banner that read "We the parents demand that our children be protected from lewd acts," KNBC reported.
"I want the principal out here to give us an explanation, an answer," one parent told the news station. "I think they should shut down the school to start with. Shut it down, temporarily, until they find a way to let us know that our children are protected."
District officials said the school will be closed Tuesday and Wednesday as investigators continue to probe what staffers might have known about the two teachers: Mark Berndt and Martin Singer.
Berndt, 61, allegedly bound and blindfolded dozens of students and subjected them to lewd acts for his sexual kicks between 2005 and 2010, authorities claim.
He photographed them with a giant live cockroach crawling on their faces and a blue plastic spoon allegedly filled with his semen up to their mouths, authorities said.
Berndt allegedly told the kids they were playing a "tasting game," a Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department source told the Daily News.
Springer, 49, was arrested Friday on suspicion of fondling two girls inside his classroom sometime in the last three years.
District officials originally said they were not aware of any complaints against the teachers, but prior accusations have since surfaced.
On Saturday, authorities revealed that a female student may have been the victim of both teachers.
The girl and her parents complained to school officials in 2008 when she was a student in Berndt's second-grade class and brought home strange pictures, the Los Angeles Times reported.
Officials dismissed the complaints, and the girl was transferred to Springer's class, where he allegedly touched her on the leg and thigh during the school day, sources told The Times.
Last Thursday, authorities acknowledged that 18 years ago, a 10-year-old girl claimed Berndt tried to fondle her. The case was investigated by the Sheriff's Department, but the District Attorney declined to prosecute saying the 1993 case lacked sufficient evidence, officials said.
Superintendent John Deasy has said he is "sickened and appalled" by the allegations.
District officials plan to meet with parents at a local high school Monday night.
Berndt was removed from his classroom last year after a pharmacy photo technician printed the disturbing images and alerted local police.
ndillon@nydailynews.com
Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/news/crime/parents-protest-california-school-teacher-child-molestation-horror-article-1.1017982#ixzz2K5BGnXr7
It doesn't appear the two teachers conspired together, authorities said, but both were arrested last week on suspicion of sex abuse — sending shock waves through the community of Miramonte Elementary School in South Los Angeles.
The protesting parents carried a large banner that read "We the parents demand that our children be protected from lewd acts," KNBC reported.
"I want the principal out here to give us an explanation, an answer," one parent told the news station. "I think they should shut down the school to start with. Shut it down, temporarily, until they find a way to let us know that our children are protected."
District officials said the school will be closed Tuesday and Wednesday as investigators continue to probe what staffers might have known about the two teachers: Mark Berndt and Martin Singer.
Berndt, 61, allegedly bound and blindfolded dozens of students and subjected them to lewd acts for his sexual kicks between 2005 and 2010, authorities claim.
He photographed them with a giant live cockroach crawling on their faces and a blue plastic spoon allegedly filled with his semen up to their mouths, authorities said.
Berndt allegedly told the kids they were playing a "tasting game," a Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department source told the Daily News.
Springer, 49, was arrested Friday on suspicion of fondling two girls inside his classroom sometime in the last three years.
District officials originally said they were not aware of any complaints against the teachers, but prior accusations have since surfaced.
On Saturday, authorities revealed that a female student may have been the victim of both teachers.
The girl and her parents complained to school officials in 2008 when she was a student in Berndt's second-grade class and brought home strange pictures, the Los Angeles Times reported.
Officials dismissed the complaints, and the girl was transferred to Springer's class, where he allegedly touched her on the leg and thigh during the school day, sources told The Times.
Last Thursday, authorities acknowledged that 18 years ago, a 10-year-old girl claimed Berndt tried to fondle her. The case was investigated by the Sheriff's Department, but the District Attorney declined to prosecute saying the 1993 case lacked sufficient evidence, officials said.
Superintendent John Deasy has said he is "sickened and appalled" by the allegations.
District officials plan to meet with parents at a local high school Monday night.
Berndt was removed from his classroom last year after a pharmacy photo technician printed the disturbing images and alerted local police.
ndillon@nydailynews.com
Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/news/crime/parents-protest-california-school-teacher-child-molestation-horror-article-1.1017982#ixzz2K5BGnXr7