Sussex Police detectives have finally brought to justice Sarbaz Najmadeen Ali, who had been on the run for over eight years after absconding from the Crown Court during his trial for rape and sexual assault. Ali, 36, had been found guilty of committing a rape, an attempted rape, assault by penetration, and two counts of sexual assault against a 33-year-old man who was known to him in Hastings in 2013.
Despite being granted bail by Hove Crown Court during the lunch break of his trial in September 2014, Ali fled the court and disappeared during the judge’s summing up. A warrant was issued by the judge for his arrest, and Sussex Police issued an appeal to trace him.
Ali was later featured on the BBC’s Crimewatch ‘Most Wanted’ appeal following his conviction. An officer from the German Polizei recognised Ali from the photographs and contacted Sussex Police, who discovered that Ali was in custody in Germany for suspected offences there. Ali was then extradited to France for offences he had committed there before a European Arrest Warrant could be executed.
Ali was convicted of a sexual assault committed in France and given a one-year prison sentence. Sussex Police had to wait until he had served his sentence before the European Arrest Warrant could be executed. He was then arrested in France and extradited back to the UK.
On 5 April 2023, Ali appeared at Lewes Crown Court and was sentenced to seven years imprisonment for the offences, plus a further three years on an extended licence. He was also given a Sexual Harm Prevention Order for life, which will restrict his access to children under the age of 16, reflecting his dangerousness to young people following his conviction in France.
Investigator Julian Stokes commended the victim for their courage in giving evidence at the trial in 2014 and waiting for over eight years for justice to be served. He also emphasized that Sussex Police will take extraordinary measures to bring dangerous offenders like Ali back to the UK to face justice.
