Oxford News
Oxford rapist who fled to Iraq is jailed for 13 years
Salam Karis, 35, was sentenced at Oxford Crown Court on Friday after an incident at a towpath near Hythe Bridge Street on January 19, 2014.
The court heard he fled the country after being granted bail, and only returned to the UK in a small boat from Iraq in July last year.
He was convicted by a jury of three counts of rape at a trial earlier this year of raping the woman after they had been at The Bridge Nightclub and Anuba which was part of the same set-up.
The court heard the woman had been visiting a friend in Oxford at the time of the incident after travelling up from Brighton.
The woman told the jury that her friend had just turned 18 and they were planning to go out.
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After being given drinks at the club by Karis and others, she was led away from the club towards the canal towpath and a wooded area and raped.
The victim, now 32, read out an impact statement in court. She said: “I was driven two hours in a police car to a rape crisis centre in Milton Keynes.
“The examination was deeply humiliating. I felt like a lab rat. I’m haunted by the memory of the forensic examination.
“I could not have imagined justice would take this long. After the incident I was emotionally derailed and emotionally unstable.
“I’ve always been a very strong woman. Despite this, I have suffered with vulnerability.
“For years, I have experienced random panic attacks. The defendant skipped bail and fled the country illegally.
“Bail should never have been given in the first place, the justice system failed me. I have spent 12 years trying to heal from something that should never have happened.
“I hope justice will prevail.”
The court heard that Karis initially came to the UK when he was 17 in 2008 from war-torn Iraq. Also that he has no previous convictions.
In mitigation, that court heard that Karis continues to deny that the offences were committed by him, but was sorry for the impact on the victim.
Judge Maria Lamb said: “12 years ago, in the dark and in the rain on a towpath by the canal, you raped the victim.
“You were convicted unanimously of your crimes. She was able to say ‘no’ and she said it more than once and you ignored her.
“It’s clear the impact on her has been devastating. You ran away to escape the consequences of your crimes.
“She has suffered from severe psychological harm.”
Karis was jailed for 13 years and given an indefinite restraining order to not contact the victim.
He was also put on the sex offenders’ register for life.
In October, Jericho community organiser John Mair warned that the Lazy Saturday and Lazy Sunday events, which are staged at Mount Place featuring music and food, were in danger of being cancelled.
During the past five years, Mr Mair from Jericho, has organised a series of free Lazy Saturday, Lazy Sunday and Oktoberfest events.
READ MORE: Lazy Saturday could be scrapped
Local bands play and food including hotdogs is provided by local businesses and about 200 people usually turn up.
Mr Mair, aged 75, called for more help in organising the event due to his age, and now it is set to return on Saturday, May 9.
Mr Mair said: “Lazy Saturday is returning to Mount Place, the village square beside the canal.
“It will be there there for families to enjoy from midday.
“There will be music from four local bands, fresh beer from the Little Ox brewery, German sausages from Tom the German sausage man, and stalls selling a variety of Jericho merchandise.
“Come along – it’s free and is open until 6pm.”
Mr Mair added: “I was going to give Lazy Saturdays a 2026 sabbatical but local musicians pleaded with me (to run it) as they really enjoyed playing a community event by the canal – please do come and support them.”
Mr Mair started the events after Oxford City Council revamped Mount Place, and volunteers from the Greening Jericho group “put in some lovely plants”.
“It became a nice communal area for people to use, except they weren’t using it,” he said earlier.
Mr Mair also organises about 30 events a year under the MyJericho umbrella, which also features themed walks in the area, and guest talks at St Barnabas Church.
But he said the Mount Place gatherings “take the most work”.
“I have to submit a health and safety form to the city council, an event plan has to be approved, it costs £120 to put it on, and you have to put a deposit down,” he added.
The King’s Arms in Sanford on Church Road, a Chef & Brewer Pub which is part of Greene King, will close its doors to patrons from Tuesday, May 5.
The ‘charming countryside’ watering hole will be shut for major renovations described as ‘extensive improvements’.
READ MORE: Village trains to Oxford to be cancelled for eight months
This will include a fresh layout for a better flow, an upgraded bar area, new, stylish furniture and decor and new wooden flooring to make the dog-friendly pub more welcoming for guests and their four-legged friends.
It will reopen its doors in June, with it’s ‘traditional pub charm’ intact but a new range of ‘modern comforts’, according to Greene King.
Outside will benefit from the spruce-up, too, with the Kings Arms’ covered pergola set to be renovated and the large beer garden to get new seating, festoon lighting and new signage.
READ MORE: Oxford Big Issue seller remembered for his ‘kindness’
The Kings Arms is a popular summer spot for customers looking to have a drink on the river, for walkers, boaters and groups of friends or family.
Menus and table bookings can be viewed and made on the Greene King app or Kings Arms website ahead of the reopening in June.
There are multiple job opportunities at the pub which is hiring new team members, with information on where and how to apply online.
Thousands of people lined up on the streets of Oxford, from the High Street to the Plain Roundabout, to hear the Magdalen College Choir welcome the sunrise with music.
It’s a tradition that has gone back half a millennium, with only vague ideas about how it began, but a reliable turnout of locals, students and visitors alike for the early start.
READ MORE: Crowds of 18,500 people celebrate May Morning in Oxford
This time on Looking Back, we’ve gathered some of our favourite pictures from May Morning in the last decade or so, representing just a fraction of this long history.
We have images of sleepy students on Magdalen Bridge clearly on the other side of an all-nighter, and incredible commitments to costumes in this gallery.
The traditional Morris dancers are also featured, as are musicians and choirboys – pictured at the top of the tower.
Take a look back at this May Morning gallery from the Oxford Mail archive.
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