A predator barricaded himself in a young boy’s room and sexually assaulted him in a terrifying attack.
Saqib Khan, 40, did not know the 10-year-old when he made his way into his family home and his bedroom as he slept. Leeds Crown Court heard on Thursday that Khan kissed the boy and told him he “loved him” before he shouted at him to get off.
The court heard the boy shared a room with his brother, and the two were kept inside by Khan, of Waterfront Hotel, Brighouse, as he pushed a mattress up against the door.
His Honour Judge Tom Bayliss said the offence took place in Huddersfield on April 20 this year. He said: “You went to a flat. The family with the young child had never met you before. Once you had entered the child’s bedroom you then barricaded yourself in there using a mattress and you sexually assaulted a 10-year-old boy who was asleep in that room.
“You kissed him on his cheek and his mouth. The child told you to leave but you put your hand over his mouth. The noise disturbed his parents and his father confronted you and told you to get out. He had difficulty entering the bedroom. One could only imagine the terror that family must have felt to find a stranger in their child’s bedroom.
“You responded that you had paid £40 and tried to stop him entering and told him to go away and leave you.”
The boy’s dad called 999 and ran out of the home to get help. He managed to flag down a passing police car and officers got into the bedroom and found Khan half naked. The boy’s mum was said to have been “hysterical” and collapsed during the incident.
Khan went on to be found guilty after a trial of sexual assault of a child under 13. Prosecutor Christopher Dunn said he had previous convictions on his record dating back to August 2004. Judge Bayliss said: “There are no aggravating previous convictions it seems to me.”
Mitigating, Michael Greenhalgh told the court: “There was a reason he was in the sort of state he was that particular night. There is no suggestion from the evidence this was sophisticated or that the boy had been targeted in any way. He was drunk…It was random and by change. The degree of the sexual assault was towards the bottom end of the scale and when he is released, he will be on licence and will be on the register and in contact with a public protection officer and there will be a sexual harm prevention order.”
Mr Greenhalgh said it was not the type of case which needed an extended sentence, but Judge Bayliss disagreed. Mr Greenhalgh said Khan has issues with alcohol and drug misuse as well as psychological difficulties. He said: “You will have read he is doing very well in prison and is doing courses and engaging with the mental health services.
“He’s got a trusted job…He is a model prisoner and someone who has made real progress and he will carry on that as he goes through the sentencing process.”
Judge Bayliss made Khan the subject of a 10-year extended sentence made up of six years in custody and a four-year extended licence period.