Asylum Seeker Staying at Ealing Hotel Jailed for Rape
Eight and a half years for attack on woman in Hyde Park
Abdelrahmen Adnan Abouelela. Picture: Metropolitan Police
September 18, 2025
An asylum seeker whose address was listed as a hotel in Ealing has been sentenced to eight and a half years in prison for raping a woman in Hyde Park.
The offence took place in November 2024, when the victim was walking home alone from a night out in central London.
Abdelrahmen Adnan Abouelela, 42, approached the woman and led her to a secluded area of the park, where the assault occurred. He was found guilty of one count of rape by a jury at Southwark Crown Court on 22 May 2025.
During sentencing on Tuesday, Judge Gregory Perrins described Abouelela’s actions as predatory and deliberate. He told the court that the defendant had taken advantage of the victim’s vulnerability, noting that she was alone and under the influence of alcohol. “You simply did not care that she could not consent,” the judge said.
Abouelela, originally from Egypt, arrived in the UK in April 2023 and claimed asylum, citing fears of political persecution and torture. His wife and child currently reside in Turkey. The court heard that he had been staying at the Hilton hotel in Ealing at the time of the offence.
Abouelela had been found guilty in absentia in Egypt in 2015 for being part of a bomb-making cell linked to the Muslim Brotherhood. The group was involved in planning the bombing of electricity pylons and gas lines.
He fled Egypt before his conviction and entered the UK via Turkey in April 2023, claiming asylum. It is unclear whether he was asked to leave Turkey, a country where the Muslim Brotherhood is not proscribed.
Defence counsel stated that Abouelela had been diagnosed with emotionally unstable personality disorder and complex post-traumatic stress disorder. However, Judge Perrins said these factors had limited relevance to the crime and concluded that the defendant showed no remorse and refused to accept that he had done anything wrong.
Under the UK Borders Act 2007, Abouelela will be subject to automatic deportation following his custodial sentence, which exceeds 12 months.
The judge commended the victim for her “immense bravery and courage” in giving evidence during the trial.
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