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You can read the story in full, but here is a summary of some of the key points from today’s hearing:

• John Ashby, 32, of no fixed address has been handed a life sentence and will serve at least 14 years in prison for raping a Sikh woman while subjecting her to a tirade of racist abuse in October 2025.
• It came after he admitted charges of rape, robbery, intentional strangulation and religiously aggravated assault during the second day of a trial on Tuesday.
• The court heard how Ashby followed the woman to her home in Walsall before he forced his way inside, while holding a stick, and carried out the attack.
• In a statement read out in court, the victim said it had "drastically" changed every part of her life but, while she continued to struggle with the lasting effects of the trauma, she vowed to not let it define her or stop her living her life "to the fullest".
• The victim’s partner said seeing her struggle was “unbearable” and he felt grief and sadness for what she went through.
• The court heard about Ashby’s medical history, including his mental health disorders, but the judge Mr Justice Pepperall said these "did not even start to explain" the offences.
• Before passing sentence, the judge described Ashby as a "deeply unpleasant racist and Islamaphobe" who was an “extreme” danger to the public.

Before he sentenced Ashby, Mr Justice Pepperall spoke of how the incident had had a "devastating impact" on the victim and her family.

He said the aftermath of the attack had affected every aspect of her life and she was "constantly in a state of fear", leaving her unable to go out without her partner.

He referred to Ashby’s mental health disorders too, which were affected by his habitual use of drugs including crack cocaine and synthetic cannabinoids, but the judge said they did not "even start to explain these offences".

He also mentioned a previous incident where Ashby grabbed a woman in public and later said he did it because he was "sexually frustrated".

Mr Justice Pepperall described Ashby as a "deeply unpleasant racist and Islamaphobe"” as well as a "very dangerous man" who posed an "extreme" risk to the public, especially women.

After passing his sentence, the judge praised the victim's bravery and said she had his admiration.

The Sikh Federation (UK) has issued a statement saying the judge showed courage by handing down a life sentence to racist John Ashby "that matches his crime".

“The severe racist element of the attack has been highlighted in the court proceedings and sends a strong signal to all racists that carry out violent attacks," said lead executive Dabinderjit Singh.

He said the sentence was the least the court could do "to help the victim through this trauma".

Today's hearing has included numerous distressing details.

If you have been affected by any of the issues raised, support is available via the BBC's Action Line pages.

The attack on the Sikh victim, in her 20s, was a second "racially aggravated rape in the space of a few weeks in the West Midlands region," added Sukhvinder Kaur, of Sikh Women's Aid.

On 9 September, a Sikh woman in her 20s was raped on Tame Road in Oldbury. No charges have yet been brought over that.

"On top of that, there were also another series of racially motivated attacks against South Asian communities, so there was a real sense of fear," Kaur added.

"Whilst this is a really welcome outcome, we still have to be reminded of the fact that the perpetrators of the Oldbury rape case still have not been found... and we really have to look at the narrative that is being played out across society that is very divisive and looks to divide communities."

"We can't separate this rape from the toxic narratives around migration, immigration, migrant communities. When we look at communities, race and religion, all of that played into the hatred that this perpetrator held against a community."

Continuing her statement, Dhillon, of the CPS, said the court was invited to treat Ashby's religious hostility as an aggravating factor.

"No one should be subjected to violence and hatred because of their background – perceived or otherwise," she said.

"Our thoughts remain with the victim, who showed remarkable courage, and we hope today’s sentencing brings her some measure of justice."

Reacting to Ashby's sentencing, Rav Dhillon, from the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), said it was a "deeply disturbing” attack driven by religious hatred.

She said it was carried out against an innocent woman in her own home "where she had every right to be and feel safe".

"John Ashby targeted a complete strange, subjected her to prolonged violence and religiously motivated abuse, and left her traumatised," she added.

Sukhvinder Kaur, chair of trustees at Sikh Women's Aid said the sentence "sent a strong message to people who have the views and attitudes of this perpetrator, so we absolutely welcome that".

The attack had sent "absolute terror" running through "the entire community across the West Midlands" she said.

"Not only was she sexually assaulted, there was the connotations of race and religion," she said.

"So the terror, the fear for her as a victim survivor and for us as the community that lives local to her, the fear that it struck across women and girls, especially those women of colour of South Asian descent, who saw themselves, saw their daughters, saw their sisters through this woman's experience."

After sentencing Ashby and telling him to be taken away to the cells, the judge turned to the victim, who was in the court, and thanked her for her bravery.

"You have my admiration for that," he adds and hopes she and her partner can rebuild their lives.

During his sentencing remarks, the judge gave his reason for adjusting the minimum term, including taking into account the time Ashby has already spent in custody.

There would be no early release under the sentence, Mr Justice Pepperall added.

For context: Typically offenders are released at the half-way point in their sentences.

Mr Justice Pepperall said Ashby would be sentenced to 21 years in jail, but went on to say this would be reduced by a third to reflect that there would be no standard early release as it was a life sentence.

The judge also said the time Ashby had already spent on remand would be deducted from the sentence.

A life sentence also means that if the person is ever released from prison, they will spend their whole life on licence, meaning if they break their licence conditions they could be returned to prison.

A life sentence is also different to a whole-life term, which is rarely handed down and means the person will never be released from prison.

John Ashby is sentenced to at least 14 years for the religiously aggravated attack on the Sikh woman.

His late guilty plea did not spare her having to rewatch video interviews, but did spare her at the last minute from facing cross examination, the judge said.

"You pose an extreme danger to women and no reliable way to say how long you remain a danger," Mr Justice Pepparall told Ashby.

Taken together with other offences, this justifies a sentence of life in prison, he tells the court.

"I have no doubt that you are a very dangerous man," the judge tells Ashby.

Assessing the risk of dangerousness, he believes Ashby carries an "extremely level of danger to the public - in particular woman".

The judge says he believes the threshold for life sentence has been met.

The judge moves on to discuss the reasoning for the aggravated assault and intentional strangulation offences.

He goes through the sentencing guidelines, adding that the robbery offence was aggravated by his previous convictions and drug use.

The judge describes Ashby as a "deeply unpleasant racist and Islamaphobe and says there was some planning involved in his offending as he "picked her out on the bus" and followed her home.

Setting out the aggravating factors, the judge says Ashby's drug use, previous offending, using the stick as a weapon and the impact his actions had on the victim staying in her own home are firmly on his mind in his judgement.

He says Ashby's neuro disorders "do not start to even explain these offences" and adds that the court has found "no evidence" of a serious underlying mental illness.

Discussing his sentence for rape, the judge said it was a category one harm case, because of the extreme nature of the crimes.

Ashby had forced his way into the victim's home, and used violence against the victim far beyond the offence.

He had also subjected to additional degradation and humiliation, holding the victim against her will for at least 24 minutes.

"Your offending has caused severe psychological harm," the judge said.

The judge references a report from a psychiatrist, which said the most significant factor in understanding Ashby's mental health was his drug use.

This included using crack cocaine and synthetic cannabinoids, Mr Justice Pepperall said.

He said it demonstrated a "harmful pattern" of using drugs and the impact it had on his mental health.

The judge next outlines Ashby's previous convictions and jail terms served.

He then details some of the mental health disorders Ashby suffered with and describes a "number of disturbing notes in the medical records".

The judge says Ashby once "grabbed" a woman in public who asked for help and members of the public intervened.

Mr Justice Pepperall says Ashby explained he was "sexually frustrated".

The judge said Ashby was "allowed drugs" while out on leave, was also noted as being "violent" and "racist" and was discharged without any proper aftercare in place.

Ashby's offences have had a devastating impact on the victim and her partner, said the judge.

Victim impact statements had shown the "profound aftermath" of crimes affecting "every aspect of her life," he said.

The victim was "constantly in state of fear and avoids going to the bathroom," he added.

"Her flashbacks continually play in her mind."

Mr Justice Pepperall said she was unable to go out without her partner, and the crimes had "affected every part of her life".

The judge continues to detail Ashby's actions on the night of the incident, including how the victim had been pulled back when she tried to escape.

"She opened the door and screamed for help but you pulled her back," Mr Justice Pepperall said.

Ashby was eventually spooked by noises from outside before running off, the judge added.

The judge begins by recapping the details of the case and outlining what he must sentence Ashby for.

Mr Justice Pepperall says he will not refer to the victim by name due to legal reasons.

"When she alighted at her stop, you also got off the bus and followed her at a distance as she walked home," the judge says, adding that Ashby "scouted around" for ways round to get into her property, armed himself with a stick and then entered her home through an insecure door.

"Once inside you climbed the stairs and attacked the woman in her bathroom," the judge says.

"Ignoring her terrified screams you ordered her to undress and hit her many times."