A “very dangerous” asylum seeker who sexually assaulted a teenager cannot be jailed as it could breach his human rights due to the torture he experienced in Syria, a court has heard.
Hassan Abou Hayleh, 39, was found guilty in November of sexually assaulting a 19-year-old woman in Dorset.
His sentencing at Bournemouth Crown Court was adjourned on Monday after his defence barrister argued imprisonment could violate his rights under Article Three of the European Convention of Human Rights.
The Syrian immigrant’s lawyer said Hayleh, who required an Arabic interpreter in court, suffers from PTSD after being tortured in a jail under the Assad regime.
CCTV footage showed Hayleh driving around Weymouth town centre at 3.25am on December 18, 2022, looking for vulnerable women to target. He spotted the victim sitting alone on the pavement after leaving a nightclub while waiting for her father to collect her.
After helping her up from the ground, he placed his hands down her trousers and inside her underwear before trying to get her into his car. The victim refused and shouted for help to three passing members of the public, telling them Hayleh had touched her.
Defence barrister Graham Gilbert told Judge Robert Pawson: “The doctor’s report only came in on Saturday and it expressed concerns about Hayleh’s PTSD.”
“He has several symptoms of PTSD which would be made worse by a custodial sentence. It would also be made worse without the support of his wife and friends,” Gilbert said.
Judge Pawson responded: “A lot of prisoners’ mental health gets worse during a custodial sentence…However we are going to take the upmost care and caution due to Mr Hayleh’s PTSD due to his time suffering torture in a Syrian prison under the Assad regime. Placing him in prison would provide echoes of that experience.”
Article Three of the European Convention of Human Rights prohibits torture, inhumane treatment and degrading punishment. The judge must now interpret UK criminal law in a way that is compatible with the Human Rights Act 1998. Hayleh, of Wentworth Close, Weymouth, was released on conditional bail until his next appearance in April.
The Syrian arrived in the UK in 2020 and had been living in Weymouth, Dorset. When questioned by police, Hayleh claimed it was a misunderstanding, saying he had only tried to help the victim by pulling up her exposed trousers after she hugged him.
At a previous hearing following his conviction, Judge Pawson told Hayleh: “You were driving around in the early hours on a Sunday morning hoping that you would find exactly what you did find, a young and vulnerable drunk woman who you wanted to get into your car so that you could sexually abuse her.”
The judge had also stated: “On the evidence before me you are potentially a very dangerous man. I shudder to think what might have happened.”
The case has drawn criticism from former politicians, with some arguing that victims’ rights should take precedence over offenders’ human rights considerations.