Due to his mental health, a Sydney man who followed an adolescent from McDonald’s and begged her for a hug before raping her in the street was given a lesser sentence.
After sexually assaulting an 18-year-old woman on the street in Castle Hill at around 2 am on November 21, 2021, Hosam Soueid, 35, was given a sentence on Tuesday that carries a maximum prison term of four years and one month.
Judge Mark Buscombe in Parramatta District Court remarked, “This was a very serious offence committed on a relatively vulnerable woman in a public place late at night and involved a level of violence committed upon her.”
As she walked out of the McDonald’s, Soueid saw her and followed her in his car with the headlights off.
He parked in front of her on the sidewalk before coming out of the shadows to confront her.
“My friend was shot and just passed away. Could you please give me a hug?” he asked her.
“No, I must leave. The victim said, “My mother is calling.”
Soueid then lifted up the teen’s skirt and briefly sexually assaulted her before grabbing her from behind in a bear hug.
She resisted him, falling on the ground and becoming scraped and bruised before fleeing.
She turned around and spotted the Castle Hill man heading the other way.
Sexual attacks on young women who are out and about at night are unquestionably very severe offences, according to Judge Buscombe.
“Young women in our community should feel secure in their ability to engage in nighttime social activities without fear of being targeted by criminals.”
Soueid’s sentence, which was retroactively applied to the date of his arrest and placement in detention on December 15, 2021, will end on January 14, 2026.
Additionally, he received a two years, eight month non-parole sentence that will end in August of next year.
Because Soueid admitted to the sexual assault early on, Judge Buscombe reduced the sentence to 25 percent less time.
After the judge considered Soueid’s mental health and discovered that he had sustained two traumatic brain injuries, including one from an assault in 2003, a longer period of parole was also proposed.
The Castle Hill man used marijuana, methamphetamine, and alcohol as self-medication for PTSD that was identified after the incident.
The judge discovered that Soueid had also shown sincere sorrow for his crimes.
