Satan took over me: Afghan man's bizarre defence for raping 2 teens at his UK flat

An Afghan asylum seeker on trial for raping and sexually assaulting two 14-year-old girls in northwest England has given bizarre evidence in the court. In his defense, he told the jury that Satan took over him after he drank alcohol.

Sultani Bakatash, 29, is on trial at Bolton Crown Court on two counts of rape, two counts of assault by penetration and one count of sexual assault. According to the Manchester Evening News, he has pleaded not guilty to all charges.

The prosecution said the alleged offences took place in December last year after Bakatash invited the two girls to his flat in Bolton. Prosecutors allege he supplied them with vodka before sexually assaulting them while they were heavily intoxicated.

The court has previously heard that the girls were "drifting in and out of consciousness" and that Bakatash "seized the opportunity to rape and abuse them" while they were in that condition.

DEFENDANT DESCRIBES EVENTS IN COURT

Giving evidence on Wednesday, June 24, through an interpreter, Bakatash told jurors he had little recollection of what happened after drinking alcohol that evening. He claimed he became ill, dizzy and eventually "uncontrollably sleepy." He said he even fell asleep for a short time. Bakatash added that the girls were being loud inside his flat and that he had asked them to leave.

During questioning by his barrister, Umar Shahzad, Bakatash was asked whether anyone had done anything to him.

"I can't say," he replied.

When asked if he could explain what the girls were doing, Bakatash answered: "I can't say what they were doing, I was not in my self."

Bakatash testified that he arrived in the UK in 2022 after leaving Afghanistan and seeking asylum. He said he had spent seven years working alongside the British military before fleeing because of the Taliban.

"For reasons of their presence, I couldn't live there so I came here. Because I was working in the British military in different provinces in Afghanistan," he told the court.

He said he initially lived in a hotel with his mother and siblings for a year and a half before moving to Bolton around two years ago. He also said he had been studying English and described his understanding of the language as "okay", although he struggled to hold conversations.

Bakatash told jurors he first met one of the girls outside a McDonald's about three months before the alleged incident. According to his evidence, she and another person had asked him to buy them food after he had finished a gym session.

"I said to her I didn't have any more cash or any money on my card but maybe some other time I could buy them food," he said.

He added that the girl told him she was 18. They met again at an Asda supermarket, where she helped him find sugar after he had once picked up flour by mistake. They exchanged Snapchat accounts and messaged occasionally. He noticed she sometimes took screenshots of his stories showing his military days or gym workouts.

WHAT HAPPENED ON THE DAY OF THE ALLEGED OFFENCES

On the day in question, the girl contacted him on Snapchat and reminded him of his promise to buy her food.

"When I saw her messages, she said the promise I made to buy her food, to take her to McDonald's to buy her food," he said.

Bakatash said he video called her and shared his location so they could meet. He met both girls and described them as "very happy and laughing." He believed they were 18 or 19 years old. He bought them food and then purchased three bottles of vodka. Bakatash insisted he does not normally drink alcohol, smoke or use drugs because he is Muslim. He bought himself only a Monster energy drink.

One of the girls used his phone to order an Uber to his flat in Georgina Court. During the eight-minute journey, he said the pair were "giggling, taking selfies and talking amongst themselves."

Asked about his intentions, Bakatash replied: "They said to me they want to see my flat, finish their drinks and they would go to town."

'I THINK SATAN TOOK OVER ME'

Back at the flat, the girls mixed vodka with Diet Coke. Bakatash said he first watched them drink before taking a swig straight from the bottle.

"I think Satan took over me and I had a drink from the bottle," he told the court.

"It was a very bad taste. It made a sour feeling in my throat."

When asked why he drank directly from the bottle, he replied: "It looked like water, I thought it might taste good."

According to the 29-year-old, the girls laughed and then made him a mixed drink. They finished one full bottle and most of the second. They moved to the living room to listen to music on his TV. That is when Bakatash said he started feeling unwell.

"My head was swinging," he told jurors. He felt dizzy and sick, as though he was "zooming" in and out. According to him, the girls started "dancing" and "kissing each other." He briefly danced with them before becoming "uncontrollably sleepy."

The prosecution alleges that Bakatash supplied the two girls with vodka before sexually assaulting them at his flat. Prosecutors told the court the teenagers were "drifting in and out of consciousness" because of the alcohol and were incapable of giving consent. They allege he took advantage of their condition.