Student who carried woman home guilty of rape

The woman was attacked at student halls of residence in Portsmouth

A student has been found guilty of raping a drunken woman after carrying her part of the way from a nightclub to his halls of residence.

The complainant woke up to find the defendant attacking her in the bedroom of the flat in Greetham Street, Portsmouth, in the early hours of 28 June, prosecutors said.

Waleed Alharbi, 26, from Saudi Arabia, was also convicted of attempting to rape the woman, aged in her 30s, in the shower.

He was remanded in custody to be sentenced at Winchester Crown Court on 9 December.

Mike Mason, prosecuting, said the pair met at the Astoria nightclub and left together, with Alharbi supporting and sometimes carrying her back to his shared apartment.

The victim went into the bathroom, followed by Mr Alharbi who pushed her down in the shower area, turned on the water and attempted to rape her, the prosecutor continued.

The complainant, who was "crying and screaming", then passed out but woke up to find the student raping her on his bed, the court heard.

She told him: "No, no, do not do this," the jury was told.

Afterward, the defendant rode off on a scooter, leaving the woman outside the building "sitting on the floor crying", Mr Mason said.

Giving evidence, Alharbi, who was studying at a language school, said the sex was consensual.

Judge Jane Miller KC, who is sitting in retirement, thanked the jury for their verdicts.

"Those of us who sit in this court think the only way cases like this could be tried is by a jury and not just these types of cases," she said.

"We think a jury brings an objectivity to cases like these which those involved in cases like this all the time cannot do."

The judge was speaking on the day the government announced plans to scrap jury trials in England and Wales for crimes that carry a likely sentence of less than three years.

Serious offences, including murder, robbery and rape, would still go before a jury, Justice Secretary David Lammy said.