Mirza Begg, aged 33, from Small Heath, denies rape, assault by penetration, strangulation, threatening someone with a sword and assault
Birmingham Crown Court(Image: Nick Wilkinson/Birmingham Live)
A man strangled and raped an 18-year-old girl hours after meeting her on a flatmate finder site, a court has heard.
Mirza Begg has been accused of offering the complainant, who he met through Roomies, a place to stay in his Birmingham flat for free only to ‘take advantage of her’.
The 33-year-old is also alleged to have threatened the teenager with a sword when she resisted him.
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Afterwards, she text her friend saying ‘He fell asleep, I just got raped’, a jury was told.
Begg, of Coventry Road, Small Heath stands trial at Birmingham Crown Court where he denies rape, two counts of assault by penetration, strangulation, making threats with an offensive weapon and assault by beating.
Opening the case against him today, Tuesday, August 26, prosecutor Andrew Wallace stated the 18-year-old girl was ‘looking for a place to live in Birmingham’ and used an app called Roomies, where people advertise accommodation.
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He told the court she met Begg who was ‘looking for something completely different’.
“He was looking to take advantage of a young female for sexual purposes,” Mr Wallace said.
“In due course you will see some WhatsApp communications between the two of them in which they discuss her coming to the address.
“She wanted to know how much. He said it would be free.
“Initially she thought that might be a scam. He sent her a video of the flat so she knew it was real.
“He offered to pick her up that day. She felt under a little bit of pressure to agree but did.”
The court heard Begg picked up the complainant around 9pm on March 17 last year and ended up being arrested shortly after 4.30am the following morning.
Mr Wallace said that upon arrival the teenager noticed a number of weapons including knives, a crossbow and guns at the address.
He told the jury that Begg left, claiming he had to take his uncle’s car back, and told her to ‘make herself comfortable’.
Mr Wallace said: “The defendant had come back. He rolled a spliff in the bedroom and asked her to join him.
“This is now in the early hours of the 18th March. He showed her a knife by the bed. She was feeling scared.
“He told her to get into the bed and he started to touch her. She said she wasn’t feeling comfortable about that. He told her ‘Shhh’.
“He started to take her clothes off. She told him ‘no’ but he didn’t listen.
“They had literally only been in each other’s company a short time.”
The prosecutor stated Begg proceeded to sexually attack, rape, strangle and slap the teenager.
He added: “When she tried to move he threatened her with a kniife and told her he would murder her if she tried to escape.”
Mr Wallace told the court the complainant had been in text contact with a friend throughout the night saying ‘something bad is about to happen’ and ‘this is so scary I need to get out, this is not safe’.
He stated after the alleged attacks she sent a message saying: “He fell asleep, I just got raped.”
The prosecutor confirmed police arrived at the flat about two and a half hours after the teenager’s friend had made a report to them.
Begg was arrested and later provided a prepared statement.
Mr Wallace said: “He did say from the messages between them sex was on the cards.
“As far as this encounter was concerned this was always going to be a sexual encounter and he made it seem like she was quite happy with everything going on.”
The trial continues.