Man, 29, jailed for raping two 14-year-old girls in Bolton

A man has been jailed for 14 years for raping two teenage girls after encouraging them to drink alcohol at his flat.

Sultani Bakatash, 29, an Afghan, met one of the girls on Snapchat before inviting her and her friend to his home in Georgina Court, Bolton, Greater Manchester, on 6 December.

Bolton Crown Court heard the 14-year-old girls drank vodka and Coke and became so intoxicated they were passing in and out of consciousness before Bakatash raped and sexually assaulted them.

Following a four-week trial, he was convicted of two counts of rape, one of sexual assault and one of assault by penetration. The judge said his work with the British Army in Afghanistan might mean he was not deported.

One of the girls managed to escape from the flat and knocked on a neighbour’s door, the court heard.

She said: “He’s trying to rape my friend. She’s locked in. He’s raping her.”

The court heard Bakatash encouraged the girls to keep drinking while taking only a sip himself and complimenting them on their appearance.

Charlotte Rimmer, prosecuting, said he had arranged to meet the girls, encouraged them to drink and then seized the opportunity to rape them.

She described him as “a man, intent on sexual gratification, regardless of what they wanted”.

The court heard both girls became so drunk they passed out and each witnessed the other being raped and sexually assaulted.