A woman has been jailed for two years for falsely accusing a Muslim man of rape after he found her drunk, barefoot and distressed in the middle of the street, and drove her home to safety.
Salim Ullah, 33, an innocent father-to-be, came across Rachel Jones, 38, following her drunken night out on April 18, 2022, and offered to take her home after finding her alone in the street.
Jones, a mother of five, had reportedly been ejected from a taxi after arguing with the driver.
Concerned by her erratic and distressed behaviour, Ullah stopped his car and offered to drive her home.
At the end of the journey, Ullah refused Jones’ attempt to hug him. She later returned home and falsely claimed she had been lured into a car and gang-raped by Ullah and two other Pakistani men.
Jones was jailed for two years on February 7 after admitting to perverting the course of justice at Chester Crown Court. The false allegations had destroyed Ullah’s reputation.
Ullah’s family expressed their anger at how such a false allegation could be thrown around so loosely. “How could she be so cruel?” they lamented after the court proceedings last week.
Subscribe to our newsletter and stay updated on the latest news and updates from around the Muslim world!
The false allegations
After dropping Jones off, Ullah was traced through his number plate and arrested at his home in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, and was held in a police cell for 30 hours.
During his initial arrest, Ullah was subjected to intrusive examinations and became the subject of rumours and judgement in his community before detectives concluded that no rape had taken place.
Ullah had cleverly recorded the encounter on his mobile phone, which was later used by the police as evidence to exonerate him and clear him of the charges.
A relative of Ullah, who requested anonymity, said: “We’re just relieved that Salim has cleared his name. He did absolutely nothing wrong. He just tried to help someone in apparent distress and what this case shows is the danger of women like Rachel Jones concocting horrible false stories that could easily ruin lives.”
impact on Ullah
Ullah was even forced to move away from his area of Stoke-on-Trent due to the community’s reaction during the court case. At the sentencing of Jones, Ullah detailed the devastating impact that the allegations against him had.
He said: “My wife was six months pregnant at the time and this allegation brought a lot of stress to us. I should have been fully there for my wife – however, we were worried about what would happen at the end of the case.
“I was worried that I might not be there for the birth of the baby and I just feel lucky I recorded the incident.”
Ullah further described how the ordeal left him feeling “violated” and that he believed he was targeted “due to my ethnicity”.
Judge praises Ullah’s ‘exemplary fashion’
The judge presiding over the case, Judge Steve Everett, told the court: “Mr Ullah behaved in an exemplary fashion and did what many people would not have done and went to your aid.
“Sadly, the reason why many other people would not have gone to the aid of a lone woman distressed in the middle of the road without shoes is due to what happened to him as a result of his act of charity.
“There will be many people who will say: ‘I am not doing that just in case a serious allegation is made.’
“Your behaviour has consequences for people genuinely in need, and you were doing a disservice to those victims who have been genuinely attacked, assaulted and sexually assaulted and are left on the side of the road and are maybe left there because people who drive by say, ‘I am not taking the risk.’”
Admitting her guilt, Jones said in court: “I said things I should never have said. I am a silly woman. I am disgusting. I am sorry. I am sorry.”
