A karate expert landed a series of blows on two men who tailed her home from a nightclub before distracting her, pouncing on her and pinning her to the ground.
Mohammad Islam and Shehab Smekramuddin — both illegal immigrants — are facing lengthy jail terms after being convicted of a chilling assault on a lone woman walking home from a nightclub.
The woman told a court that she feared she was about to be raped when the pair attacked.
The pair were seen on CCTV footage loitering near the woman outside the Royal nightclub in Forfar town centre.
Their victim said she saw one of the men staring at her but headed off along the Angus town’s High Street in the direction of her home.
CCTV footage then picks the pair up about 300 yards behind her as they walk. The woman told how moments later Islam approached and asked if she wanted to be “walked home”.
Smekramuddin pounced from behind, knocking her to the ground and pinning her down. But the pair had not bargained on her martial arts expertise.
The woman, a karate enthusiast, landed a series of blows, punching and headbutting the men. She then broke free and fled before contacting friends and the police.
Giving evidence, the woman said: “My mind went blank — I thought I was going to be raped. The incident has had a big effect on me. I’ve had a lot of panic attacks and anxiety.”
Fiscal depute Eilidh Robertson told a jury at Dundee Sheriff Court the victim had given “powerful and persuasive evidence” against her two attackers.
She said: “She was pinned to the ground in a position which would make her vulnerable — less likely to fight off a potential rapist, less likely to get a good look at the men.
“She dropped her bag during the struggle and the men weren’t interested in that — so what were they interested in?
“If they hadn’t picked someone proficient in karate to target then (the victim) being raped may well have happened.”
Islam, 28, and Smekramuddin, 48, both prisoners at Perth, denied a charge of assault with intent to rape allegedly committed on September 17 last year.
A jury found both men guilty of assault, with the allegation that they intended to rape the woman deleted from the charge.
Sheriff Linda Smith remanded both men in custody ahead of a sentencing hearing next month.
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