By Graham Brown

AN ANGUS restaurant manager who carried out a string of sexual assaults after arriving in this country from Pakistan was spared jail and deportation yesterday.

Naeem Waqas Rehmat was earlier this month convicted of sexually assaulting two women and fondling a fourteen-year-old girl—two of the offences occurring in the Forfar premises where he worked—but a sheriff said the maximum prison term available to him would see the accused spend only six weeks behind bars and instead placed him on probation for three years.

Rehmat (24) was found guilty after trial at Forfar Sheriff Court of three charges, the first that on various occasions between February 8 and May 8, 2005, at The Crossing, East High Street, Forfar, he assaulted a woman, handled her buttocks, placed his hand underneath her clothing and handled her breasts.

He was also convicted of assaulting another woman, kissing her neck and face, pushing her on to a bed, pinning her down, unbuttoning her jeans and handling her private parts on an occasion between October 1 and October 31, 2005, at Castle Street, Forfar, and, on March 28, at Caruso’s Restaurant, East High Street, Forfar, using lewd, indecent and libidinous practices towards a 14-year-old girl, handling her breasts over her clothing, seizing her by the waist, kissing her on the face and neck, placing his hands under her clothing, handling her breasts, placing his hands down her trousers and handling her buttocks.

Rehmat returned to court for sentence yesterday, supported by members of his family including his wife and father, where his counsel, Tim Niven-Smith urged Sheriff Kevin Veal not to jail the accused or make an order for him to leave the country.

He told the court Rehmat arrived in this country in 2005 and has clearance to remain here until early next year.

“He wishes to remain in this country, to create a future for himself and his wife, and any family that they may have,” said the advocate.

“Despite his behaviour he is an exceptionally hard-working young man, working in excess of 60 hours a week and someone that many Scottish and British young people could learn from.”

During the trial, evidence was led on Rehmat’s behalf about the cultural differences between Pakistan and his adopted homeland and Mr Niven-Smith suggested the accused simply had “no proper understanding of the cultural differences” of a society where women are equal and would dress in a manner where bare midriffs and underwear are often on show.

Sheriff Veal said, “That may be so, but ultimately right is right and wrong is wrong, and I would have thought that the line would have been fairly clearly defined.”

The sheriff said he was concerned by the fact that the first offence occurred very shortly after Rehmat’s arrival in this country.

“The maximum sentence available to me is one of three months imprisonment and that would mean that he would spend a period of 42 days in custody, “ continued Sheriff Veal.

“A robust probation order will mean the public interest is better served by the accused being subject to intense supervision for a period of three years, rather than being put temporarily beyond the contact of his family.”

Conditions of the order will include a ban on Rehmat being in contact with non-family members under 17 years old and he was also placed on the sex offenders’ register for five years.

Turning to the issue of possible deportation, Sheriff Veal added, “It is quite clear that with a non-custodial disposal one would not, on a summary complaint, be recommending deportation.

“However, the fact of his conviction will be before the adjudicator when a decision is made in January 2008.”