Three Afghan Men Jailed After Grooming and Raping Teenager They Lured to Bristol via Snapchat

Three Afghan nationals who groomed, raped and sexually assaulted a teenage girl after luring her from Somerset to Bristol have been sentenced to lengthy terms of imprisonment, concluding a case that began with a chance encounter during a Christmas shopping trip and ended with the perpetrators attempting to flee the United Kingdom hidden in the back of a lorry.

Mehrab Safi, 21, Awal Ahmadzai and Salman Habibkheli, both 19, were convicted on 26 June of multiple sexual offences committed against the 17-year-old girl at a property in the St Werburghs area of Bristol in late 2025. Safi received a 15-year jail sentence at Bristol Crown Court on Tuesday, while his two younger co-defendants were each handed nine-year terms in a youth detention centre. A fourth offender, a 17-year-old Afghan boy who cannot be identified for legal reasons, was convicted of rape and sentenced to two years and seven months in youth detention after remaining in the country rather than joining the others in their escape attempt.

The court heard that the victim, who cannot be named for legal reasons, first crossed paths with Safi on 25 November 2025 while she was visiting Bristol for the first time on a Christmas shopping trip with a friend. The pair met at the Cabot Circus shopping centre, where they exchanged telephone numbers and Snapchat contacts. According to police, Safi then used the messaging platform over the following days to manipulate the teenager, persuading her to send him nude photographs.

Det Sgt Jo Babbage of Avon and Somerset Police told the court that the grooming process began almost immediately after that initial meeting. "It's clear that that's where the grooming and the contact process was started that led up to her being brought into Bristol by taxi which was arranged by Safi," she said, noting that the victim had been communicating with Safi for just five days before the attacks took place.

In the early hours of 30 November, Safi arranged for a taxi to collect the girl from her family home in Somerset and drive her to his house in St Werburghs. When she arrived, the court heard, she was plied with alcohol before being sexually assaulted and raped repeatedly over the course of several hours by Safi, Ahmadzai, Habibkheli and the 17-year-old boy.

The offences only came to light when the girl's mother reported her missing, prompting officers to attend the property, where they discovered the teenager. The 17-year-old boy was arrested at the scene, but the three adult men fled from police, travelling first to Birmingham and then to London before leaving the country concealed in the back of a lorry. They were ultimately intercepted by French police, bringing their escape attempt to an abrupt end.

Sentencing the men on Tuesday, Judge Michael Cullum described the ordeal inflicted on the teenager as causing "unimaginable" trauma, telling the court that being trafficked and raped by the group would have a lasting psychological impact on the young victim.

In a victim impact statement read aloud to the court, the girl described how the attacks had fundamentally changed her life. "I had a lot more friends, I would go out a lot more, I was happier. Now, I've stopped going out, I don't even leave the house in general," she said. The teenager explained that she now only ventures outside when accompanied by her mother or closest friend, adding that even the thought of going out alone triggers panic attacks.

She told the court that her mind frequently suppresses the memories of what happened, but that the trauma resurfaces during periods of emotional difficulty, making her feel worse. "Sometimes I would dream about what happened, which I was not expecting – and I do not like those dreams at all," she added, describing herself as a "different person" to the girl she was a year earlier.

Det Sgt Babbage praised the victim's courage throughout the investigation, stating that the teenager had been left "very traumatised" by the attacks but had nonetheless demonstrated remarkable bravery in reporting what had happened and supporting the prosecution. The officer also reflected on the disturbing nature of how the case began, noting that the victim had simply been enjoying a festive shopping trip when she was targeted. "Just hearing that, reading it, this Christmas shopping trip that ended like that, as a parent, makes you feel terrified for your children to go out," Babbage said.

The case has highlighted growing concerns about the use of social media platforms such as Snapchat as tools for predatory grooming, with offenders able to exploit the relative anonymity and ephemeral nature of such services to establish contact with vulnerable young people. Investigators say the speed with which Safi moved from an initial meeting to arranging transportation for the victim demonstrates the calculated nature of the offending.

Photographs released by Avon and Somerset Police following the convictions showed the interior of the property where the attacks took place, including bare mattresses lying on the floor and a sparse, unkempt environment that prosecutors said formed the backdrop to the offences. The images were made public as part of the force's effort to demonstrate the gravity of the crimes.

The sentencing brings to a close a case that spanned two countries, after the three adult defendants were detained by French authorities while attempting to leave the UK. Their capture ensured they faced justice rather than evading prosecution abroad, and the judge's decision to impose substantial custodial terms reflects the seriousness with which the courts treat offences involving the grooming and sexual exploitation of children.

All four offenders now face the consequences of their actions, with the two youngest adult defendants beginning nine-year detention terms, Safi serving a 15-year sentence, and the juvenile co-defendant detained for a further two years and seven months. For the victim, the court proceedings have provided a measure of accountability, though she told the court that the psychological scars of that November night continue to shape her daily life.