Rapist, 21, jailed for ten years

Dahir Ibrahim is expected to be deported at the end of his sentence

A man has been convicted of three counts of rape and jailed for ten years following a lengthy trial at Birmingham Crown Court.

Dahir Ibrahim, 21, a Somalian national, who lived in Smethwick, raped street sex workers at knifepoint in the Edgbaston area of Birmingham.

He targeted vulnerable women in their 20s, 30s and 40s in 2003 and 2005.

He has to sign the sex offenders' register for life and the judge recommended him for deportation.

Officers from Rose Road police station worked with health outreach project SAFE to reach women sex workers to identify victims and warn of the potential threat to their safety.

'Truly evil individual'

They also had assistance from the Anawim project, a voluntary organisation that helps vulnerable women.

Insp Kevin Doyle, who worked at Rose Road community safety bureau, said Ibrahim preyed on vulnerable women who endured a life of prostitution and drug dependency.

He said: "These verdicts mark the end of a long and complex investigation where we have been forced to overcome many barriers in first controlling and now convicting a truly evil individual.

"He is a predatory individual who selected his victims carefully and then raped them at knifepoint leaving them emotionally and physically scarred.

"The victims were marginalised by much of society and in many cases lived with the impact of their violation in silence.

"The courage of the victims in taking the witness stand is acknowledged and applauded. "