Man admits rape and religiously aggravated assault after court confrontation

John Ashby, 32, admits using Islamophobic slurs during attack on Sikh woman he thought was Muslim A man who racially abused a Sikh woman as he raped her has pleaded guilty to the assault after being confronted in court by a member of the public. John Ashby pleaded guilty to rape, religiously aggravated assault, intentional strangulation, and robbery of the woman at her home in Walsall. Ashby initially pleaded not guilty but unexpectedly changed his pleas after he was sworn at by a member of the public in Birmingham crown court. The 32-year-old, of no fixed abode, asked to see his barrister and changed his pleas about an hour after being sworn at and told to “sort your shit out” by a member of public who approached the dock. The victim, who is in her 20s, was due to give evidence on Tuesday. Ashby, who wrongly believed the woman was Muslim, used Islamophobic slurs during the attack, calling her a “fucking Muslim bitch”. The judge said Ashby had been “convicted of very serious offences” and warned that he was considering the imposition of a life sentence. “It seems to me that anybody who commits these offences … is a very dangerous individual,” Justice Pepperall added. Prosecution la