A man has been sentenced to 34 years in prison after a 24-year-old woman was abducted by masked men upon landing at Birmingham Airport, driven to London and subjected to more than a day of torture and rape at a house in Hanwell.
Gagandeep Singh, 34, of Heathfield Road, Wandsworth, was sentenced at Isleworth Crown Court on Friday after being found guilty of two counts of rape, false imprisonment, causing grievous bodily harm with intent, and kidnap. The sentence comprises 28 years in custody followed by a six-year extended licence period. He will not be eligible for parole until he has served at least 18 years, and will be deported on release with no right of re-entry to the UK.
The court heard that the victim had become suspicious in June 2024 after being asked to carry a suitcase containing unknown items back to the UK from Thailand, and refused to do so. Upon landing at Birmingham Airport, she was bundled into a car by masked men and driven to a property in Hanwell, west London, where she was subjected to prolonged torture, including being punched, beaten, stripped, whipped and burnt. Singh raped her on two separate occasions during her ordeal.
In the immediate aftermath, the traumatised woman told her mother she had been attacked but was initially unable to disclose the full extent of what had happened. With support from her mother and specialist Metropolitan Police officers, it took around six weeks before she felt able to give a complete account of the assault. After her release, she was threatened and warned not to speak about what had occurred.
Crucially, the clothing she had been wearing during the abduction had been preserved at home. Forensic examination of the garments produced a one-in-a-million DNA match linking Singh to the crime. At the time, he was already in prison on remand in connection with an unrelated matter. When arrested and interviewed, he answered “no comment” to all questions, but the combination of the DNA evidence and the victim’s testimony was sufficient to secure charges, with Singh convicted in February.
Detective Constable Seetara Abdul, from the Met’s North West Rape and Serious Sexual Offences Unit, who led the investigation, praised the victim’s courage. “The brutality of what the victim faced is unimaginable,” she said. “She has shown immense bravery in coming forward. The cruel level of control left her fearing for her life. Threats were made to try and silence her, but the support of her mum and the diligent care shown by the officers meant we were able to apprehend and charge an extremely dangerous individual.” DC Abdul also highlighted the role played by a team of female officers who worked at the victim’s pace throughout the investigation, adding: “We know how difficult it can be for women who have been the victim of this sort of traumatising attack to come forward.”
